


Whispers in the dark

by ArbitraryRambunctious (SheepOutTetradecagon)



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Implied abusive parents, Slow Burn, endgame thoschei, everyone hates rassilon and they should, except tecteun but she's not to be trusted, hp au but they're at a different school than hogwarts, short lived thorsair but it is there, the master is a broken mess, there is very little school happening due to excessive plotting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:41:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 45,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23237110
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SheepOutTetradecagon/pseuds/ArbitraryRambunctious
Summary: Theta is ready to start her last year at the Gallifreyan academy of magic when her twin brother decides to drop out of school, saddling her with the responsibilities he once shouldered. Struggling to adjust to her new life, she must try to get along with her new work partner who may or may not have been her brother's ex, and keep her friends out of the trouble that seems to pop up around every corner. All while witches and wizards are going missing at an alarming rate around them.
Relationships: The Corsair/Thirteenth Doctor, Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 61
Kudos: 48





	1. Responsibilities

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!  
> It's been ages since I last wrote for this fandom but with both the quarantine and the hiatus I really felt the need to produce some content for these two, so I decided I was going to be _that_ person and do a hp au, but with a slight twist. Anyway, I'll try to update as regularly as I manage until school actually gives me something to do, so enjoy!
> 
> Also I will be using Theta and Koschei for 13 and Dhawan's master respectively because calling them doctor and master sounds a bit odd and I am going to need a way to distinguish between all the different incarnations in a way that makes sense (still working on that, suggestions are very welcome), and with the story revolving around them that's what makes the most sense I guess.

The prefect’s badge feels heavy in her hand. 

She is standing outside of the staff meeting room, a place that previously never held any sort of interest to her. It never would have, and yet here she is, not fully able to bring herself to enter what could only be described as the equivalent to a den of lions, except the lions are ambitious students led by power hungry fools. Power hungry fools that all know of her rebellious streak, and which would not hesitate to pounce should she act out of line. Theta is not faint of heart, but she does have at least a semblance of self preservation.

Sighing, she takes a step forwards, contemplating opening the door, but decides against it. Her gaze fall down onto the badge in her hand again, turning it over so she can watch the light play on the ridges of the embossed metal.

The responsibility that comes with it feels wrong in all manner of ways, partially because she was never one to play by the rules, but mostly because it was never meant to be hers. She can imagine the previous owner must have had similar feelings towards it for him to dump it on her, a questionable action at best, but then again, her twin brother was never one to consider consequences before jumping into trouble head first. She’s still not entirely sure how he landed himself the position.

The note that was left with the badge is still crumpled up at the bottom of her pocket. The message is short and to the point, and she has it memorised by now. Yet, she can’t bring herself to throw away the note. It is all stupid sentimentality, it’s not like her brother died or anything, but part of her doesn’t really trust professor River Song to keep him out of trouble no matter how many fancy titles she holds despite her young age. 

Letting out a huff of frustration, she approaches the door again.

“You can do this, Thete,” she mutters, beginning to pace outside the door. “It’s just a tiny position in one of the most prestigious schools on this planet, nothing special.”

She can’t do it.

She can already imagine Borusa’s disdainful gaze as she bursts through the doors. That alone is almost enough to make her want to turn away and return to her room so she can pretend her other half ditching her didn’t happen. While her brother had somehow managed to talk the head of house into transferring the responsibility to her before running off, Theta highly doubt that Borusa was particularly happy about the turn of events. Not that Borusa had ever been very fond of her family. 

Despite being one of the major older full blood families in Gallifrey, they were known for producing a notable amount of controversial public figures. She’s no exception, but unlike many of her relatives she’s completely fine staying out of the limelight as long as she can do her own thing. 

Sadly, just going about her day has started to become increasingly difficult for her lately.

Deciding she is already too late for the meeting to save any face by actually showing up, she slips the badge back into the pockets of her robes, turning to leave. It is still a full day before classes start, but she could probably use the time to catch up on some of her subjects.

“Theta.”

She flinches. Her mind tells her to make a run for it, but treacherously, her body decides to turn around to meet the owner of the voice. 

Yasmin Khan is a 6th year student and prefect for the house of prydon, currently peeking out of the staff meeting room door with a tired look. Despite being a year younger, she is one of the few friends Theta still have at the academy, which would probably be a sad thing if Theta hadn’t been a generally unapproachable person in the eyes of the majority of the school. 

This also means, she is one of the few people Theta is willing to listen to in a pinch. She has no doubts Borusa is aware of this. Cursing silently to herself under her breath, she forces her face into a sheepish smile.

Yaz’ face remains serious, the other occupants of the room no doubt waiting in tense silence for the younger girl to reel her in so the meeting can begin. Theta bites her lip anxiously, shifting her weight from one leg to the other. 

There is a smidge of sympathy as Yaz steps outside, holding out her hand for Theta to take.

“We were just about to begin. Borusa thought you might want to actually be inside rather than pacing outside the door.”

“How considerate of him.” Theta smiles stiffly, recognising the politely disguised threat for what it is, slipping past Yaz into the closest vacant chair without offering Borusa and the other house heads a glance.

She can hear Yaz sigh as she follows suit, and makes a mental note to apologise to her later. Possibly take her out to the red grass fields behind school where her brother was raising illegal dragon eggs before he left. She’d love that, or maybe they can go watch the lake after dark.

Yaz elbows her in the side, motioning towards Borusa who has already started to drone on about what is expected of them this year and what challenges they expect to face in the coming months. Especially in relation to the many disappearances that have been plaguing the community throughout summer. Theta can feel her stomach knot at the mention, an ugly gut feeling settling over her.

The other prefects remain completely silent, listening attentively, only shooting in with an occasional question to clear things up or humming in agreement whenever the house heads make a particularly good statement. The whole thing makes Theta feel like she’s going to burst.

Borusa is assuring them for the fifth time that the ministry is doing everything they can to keep the situation from escalating when she can’t hold it in anymore.

“You didn’t think to go looking?”

She can feel the eyes of the other prefects burn into the back of her neck, her cheeks burning slightly in embarrassment at letting her thoughts slip like that. Borusa looks like he is ready to throttle her where she sits, but she refuses to back down now that she’s already made a blunder of herself. 

She can see Yaz gaping at her out of the corner of her eye, and makes yet another mental note to come up with a proper apology to the girl for putting up with her.

The head of the cerulean house gives Theta a surprised look. Her voice is a soft, but inquisitive one, green eyes boring into her.

“Looking for them?”

Theta shrugs, fidgeting with the sleeves of her robes. She is aware the other prefects are regarding her with a cautious kind of interest, the whole room holding its breath in anticipation to see where the conversation will go.

“For the people who went missing. They were all directly related to the academy in some sort of way, weren’t they?”

Borusa coughs, interrupting any answer that any of the other house heads might have had.

“You don’t need to concern yourselves with the matter. As long as you ensure no one acts out of line, or leave the school without permission until this matter is resolved, the disappeared will be handled by the ministry.”

“Seems a bit passive. You’ve got so many resources here. Whole school full of the most brilliant heads in the country.”

“We will not be discussing this further. Until the ministry gives us any other directions, we will continue to run this school as per usual. Am I being clear?”

Theta opens her mouth to protest, but Yaz’ pleading eyes is enough to make her reconsider. She nods, averting her eyes.

“Yes, sir. Clear as crystal.”

Seemingly content with her response, the house heads continue their, briefing, and the rest of the prefects turn their attention away from her again. At least for the most part.

The other seventh year prefect for the prydon house, Koschei, is practically seething in his chair on the other side of the table, staring at her with a sullen look only to look elsewhere if she tries to meet his eyes. Theta usually doesn’t have a problem with people disliking her, but something about the way he openly displays his emotions towards her, as if to taunt rubs her the wrong way. By the time the meeting is over, he is out of the door before Theta can even gather up her things. 

Yaz waits for her by the door, seemingly eager to get back to the dorms, which is perfectly fine with Theta. She avoids the stern eyes of Borusa as she passes him on her way to the door, hugging her satchel close to her chest. 

She is left to her own devices again when they reach the dorms, Yaz being dragged off by Ushas, the other sixth year prefect to discuss something that no matter how much Theta pries, Ushas refuse to reveal. 

For a moment she considers trying to get hold of Koschei, mostly because she is new to the job, and he is the closest she can get to a working partner, but quickly dismisses the thought. Although she never really had any grounds to dislike him, he did fool around with her brother for a while before he fell head first for River Song. Judging by Koschei’s earlier reaction towards her, Borusa is not the only one who’s not happy about her being her twin’s replacement. 

And she hasn’t seen him since he left the meeting either way, the seventh year dorms being completely empty aside from herself.

She ignores the biting loneliness, pulling out her school book from the chest at the end of her bed. If she can’t find anyone to hang out with, she might as well catch up on her schoolwork.

* * *

He doesn’t contact her until three days later when she’s hanging out on the bleachers, watching the prydon quidditch team during their practice. Maybe it is the dramatic flair that everyone in his family seems to carry themselves with, or possibly she’s just been waiting for him to actually voice his concerns with her ever since the meeting. Either way she knows it is him approaching before he plops down next to her. 

By now most of the other prefects would definitely have worked out a plan for dividing work and patrols, though she supposes that’s a lot easier for the ones who have been paired up since their fifth year. She glances over at him warily, expecting him to start talking but he only observes her quietly for a moment.

Theta meets his eyes after a moment. He is  _ close. _ If she wanted to she could easily lean in to touch her lips to his without having to scooch closer. For the most part she isn’t a very big fan of having her personal space invaded, but for some reason, she does not move away. Maybe it is because everything he throws at her feels like a challenge, and she is not a fan of losing. Instead, she meets his gaze unflinchingly, leaning in slightly to see if she can make him uncomfortable. 

Like her, he doesn’t back away.

His eyes are practically manic, boring into her in the shape of soft brown irises framed by long lashes that does little to dampen the restless energy that lies beneath. She suppose she can objectively see why people find him pretty, although it is definitely a dangerous thought. Her brother got into trouble with him a lot when they were partners. She does not intend to repeat his mistakes. 

“You look nothing like him,” he finally concedes, leaning back a bit. Theta grimaces, giving him a shrug.

“I get that a lot. Should see my other brothers though, they don’t look much like me either. Sometimes used to wonder if I really was related to any of them when I was younger.”

Koschei squints, as if he’s looking for some hidden meaning behind her words. His fringe is spilling into his eyes, the wind pulling at it making him look even more manic than before. His lips are trembling slightly, as if he is trying to say something but the words won’t come. Theta bites her lip.

She expects him to bring up the elephant in the room, but he just directs his attention towards the quidditch players down on the pitch. Theta can see Corsair yelling instructions at her underlings, her frizzy brown hair held back by her goggles. The tryouts won’t be held in another couple of weeks time, but she wastes no time with drilling her current team mates into shape.

Noticing her audience, she turns briefly towards her two classmates at the bleachers, blowing them a kiss.

Theta averts her eyes quickly, feeling her cheeks burn slightly. While she is on more than good terms with Corsair, it is no secret she will get on with anyone she deems worthy of her attention. For all she knows the kiss could have been meant for Koschei.

To Theta’s chagrin, he looks entirely unaffected, staring ahead as if it didn’t happen. He does seem to be frowning a bit, but that might be Theta’s imagination. She shifts awkwardly, hoping he will start a conversation, but he continues to ignore her.

Theta coughs, adjusting her robes.

“So, I take it you didn’t come here to watch the quidditch team practice. Here to discuss prefect duties?”

“Perhaps.” He stares ahead as if he’s watching the training match, though at closer inspection Theta can tell he isn’t actually interested in what is going on out on the pitch. Corsair gives the signal to release the balls, her team mounting their brooms and taking off into the air. 

Koschei’s eyes remain fixed on the ground. Theta turns fully towards him, hoping to catch his attention.

“Well, you should fill me in, it’s not like my dear brother ever told me how this stuff works. Is this a team thing or do we plan shifts? ”

Koschei grimaces, lip pulled up into a sneer. “I’m not here to babysit you. Your brother was shit at his job anyway, always running off during his shifts and picking up strays from the fields.”

Theta snorts. She is familiar with her brother’s tendency to befriend all sorts of magic creatures, sometimes to the point of putting other people at risk. It is something she has been forced to deal with her whole life, which means she can recognise grudging affection when she sees it.

“You really liked him, didn’t you?”

It is an offhand comment. Theta knows her brother will deny it, but she had been there to pick up the pieces after the two had a fall out once. As much as he’d refuse to admit he was constantly flirting with anyone who managed to dazzle him, Theta could tell their friendship or whatever it had been had meant something to him. 

What she didn’t expect is for his feelings to have been genuinely reciprocated, but judging by how Koschei seizes the lapels of her robes, pulling her up from the bench in anger tells her otherwise.

She should probably be scared. She knows despite being liked by most teachers and having half the student body swooning for him, he’s prone to violent bursts of anger. The only thing that saved him from being expelled in his fifth year after having attacked a fellow student had been his family’s influence. And yet, she can’t keep a grin from reaching her face as he holds her up, her feet barely touching the ground. 

He sobers up after a couple of tense seconds, letting go of her robes which causes her to stumble slightly as she regains her footing. He doesn’t look at her as he shakes his head as if to clear it, slinging his bag over his shoulder before muttering out a “Just meet me for patrols tonight at eight.” Then he is gone just as quick as he appeared.

Somehow, her heart is beating loudly enough that she’s certain the quidditch players can hear it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> If anyone wants to come scream about doctor who with me you can find me at tumblr as @Ilunefulltsinn


	2. Omens

“You’re looking down in the dumps. What got you in a mood?”

“I’m not having a mood”.

Yaz flops down onto Theta’s bed, giving Ryan a look which Theta pointedly ignores in favour of staring down into her herbology textbook. She’s been trying to get herself into it for a while now, but the more she looks at it the more she’s certain you have to be a bloody cerulean to even stand a chance in the subject. She has nothing against them really, but she needs to channel her frustrations somewhere, preferably not at her only friends.

Ryan picks the book out of her hands, frowning slightly at it. He too settles at the foot end of Theta’s bed, eying her in that worried way both him and Yaz have a tendency towards.

“You never do school work at this time of the day,” he points out, to which Yaz hums in agreement. Theta scoffs, crossing her arms over her chest in mock irritation.

“I do plenty of schoolwork. Also, this is a good thing. Pretty sure it is a good thing. I might actually learn something here.”

She yanks the book back, opening it at a random page. The plant depicted looks positively vicious. Not that she is one to judge it. Plenty of plants are completely harmless. Then again, the majority of them are not of the magical kind.

“Sure you don’t want to talk about it?” Yaz presses. “You never tell us anything.”

Theta shrugs, casting a quick glance around the dorm room. There are a few other student currently hanging out there, but they seem absorbed in their own worlds. Fortunately, since there are still quite a few who have yet to arrive, they have the room almost to themselves. 

“Not much to talk about really, had a long day. Could probably go for a nap”, she sighs, laying back against her pillows so she can stare up into the domed ceiling. The seventh year dorm is one of her favourite places within the castle of Arcadia. It is a huge circular room, with beds arranged into small alcoves along the walls, with the middle of the room occupied by a raised platform that has several bookcases embedded into its foundation and a common area on top. The huge window on the north wall gives her a perfect view over the lake and tall grassy fields redder than the sun stretching on into the forbidden forest. 

The low afternoon sun is filtering through the glass panes, bathing the room in warm colours. It makes Yaz’ hair look like it’s made out of fire, which is all kinds of distracting. Their eyes meet briefly and Theta is reminded that she is avoiding their questions. Yet another thing to add to the growing list of things to apologise for. Something tells her normal friends don’t have lists like hers.

“You’re not really gonna sleep now are you?”

“Probably not. You never told me how your day was.”

“Avoiding the real questions here.”

“Oi, I’m genuinely interested. I’m sure you’ve had a more eventful day than I have.”

“Well, Ryan fell out of the cart while we were helping Nardole harvest pumpkins. You should have been there to see it, it was hilarious.”

“Was not, and I wasn’t ready. It is difficult to tell when it is about to move when there's nothing’s pulling it.”

Theta sits up. “But there is. I’ve seen them.”

Ryan gives her a skeptical look. “Are you sure? What did they look like, because there was definitely nothing there last time I checked.”

Theta is about to launch into a long explanation detailing exactly what the creatures pulling the carts and carriages around the school looks like, when the sound of someone running up the stairs interrupts her robbing her of a chance to even begin. The three of them turn towards the door just in time to see a petite brown haired girl tumble through it. She is regaining her breath as she spots them, walking over with a determined stride.

“Sorry to interrupt, but it is a bit of an emergency.”

Theta is sure she must look as confused as she currently feels, because the girl offers her a hand and a confident smile. “Clara Oswald, fifth year prefect. Used to hang out with your brother a lot before he, well. Anyway, you two should head down into the cloister, we’re having an emergency meeting.”

Her hand feels small in Theta’s, but her handshake is firm nevertheless. Theta eyes Yaz who has already stood up, feeling a bit embarrassed for not recognising the girl. She can remember seeing her brother with her on several occasions, not to mention she was definitely present at the previous prefect meeting.

She turns towards the third member of the party, giving him an apologetic smile. 

“Sorry Ryan, we’ll see you at dinner?”

“Sure. Go on, I’ll find you later.”

Clara smiles when her and Yaz makes motion to follow her, her mood being notably bright for an alleged emergency situation. Theta decides that for once, she wholeheartedly supports her brother’s taste in friends.

* * *

The cloisters are an unwelcome place in every possible manner. Not only is it swarming with ghosts (not all of them friendly) but it smells like mildew, and the walls always feel slightly damp. There are rumours that they once were used to hold prisoners, or potentially a crypt hosting the remains of renegade wizards. If asked about it, the ghost will avoid the questions, which leaves the whole thing a mystery for most people.

Theta rarely ventures down there outside her potions lessons, and she tries to avoid the place if she can. While she wouldn’t consider herself afraid of the dark, there is something about the dull lighting and stale air of the place that just feels _wrong_ in ways she can’t explain.

The part that Clara is leading them to is one Theta is not very familiar with. They traverse down a narrow hallway, lit by magically fuelled torches that burn a washed out orange. The hallway ends in a small set of stairs, passing the entrance to the arcalian common room (though she’s never been inside she’s heard it is supposedly one of the marvels of the castle’s architecture, something that is hard to believe when seen from the outside). They continue until they reach a dead end. Clara taps her wand against the wall, the bricks rearranging to reveal a hidden entrance.

“Oh that’s clever,” Theta mutters, allowing her fingers to skim over the edges of the doorway that is now gaping in front of them. Clara smiles knowingly before ducking into the dark tunnel.

The tunnel ends in a mostly bare room containing several chairs, a couple of bookshelves and a grand piano standing on a dais in the middle of the room. There is a surprising lack of teachers aside from the transfiguration professor, who refuses to respond to anything aside from Missy, seated by the piano. She does not acknowledge them when they enter, continuing to play a eerily cheerful tune that somehow sounds terrifying despite itself. Occasionally, the tones grow discordant in a way that sends shivers down Theta’s spine.

The head boy, a patrex called Narvin if Theta can remember correctly, is standing at the front of the group of prefects, looking slightly uncomfortable with Missy’s off-key playing. She stops abruptly, turning to face them.

“Looks like everyone is here. Well, go on then. I haven’t got all night and you’re intruding.”

Narvin nods, clearing his throat. 

“The house heads gave me the authority to relay this message as they are currently discussing important matters to headmaster Rassilon.”

Missy leans back against the piano, ice blue eyes watching over them attentively. Theta wonders if she’s there on Rassilon’s bidding as well or if she simply chose to be there, both options equally plausible. There are numerous rumours going around about her affiliation with the darker forces of the wizarding world, though none of them are backed up by any solid evidence. That in addition to her being directly related to the current minister of magic makes her difficult to find any actual dirt on. 

“As some of you have noticed, we are still short of quite a few students. Rassilon was contacted earlier today by a parent who had not received confirmation that her daughter made it to the school safely. Looking into the matter it turns out all of the people who have yet to show up left home at some point during yesterday, but never made it here.” Narvin pauses, looking out over the crowd before he utters his next sentence.

“All of them were of either half blood or muggle born descent.”

A murmur breaks out in the crowd. Theta can feel Yaz grow stiff beside her, unable to mask the fear those words incites in her. She is clearly not the only one, the other prefects growing louder by the second. Missy is being the opposite of a model teacher by not raising a finger to interfere, calmly watching the chaos that breaks while Narvin is struggling to regain order. 

Theta briefly meets Koschei’s eyes across the room, but he quickly averts his gaze, proceeding to blatantly ignore her in favour of watching the crowd with a calculating stare. Whatever he is thinking of, Theta has a feeling she wouldn’t approve of it.

After a lot of shouting and finally Missy interfering by clapping her hands loudly, the crowd begins to settle down again, allowing Narvin to take the word again. “Be assured the situation is under investigation. Until further notice we are asked to keep an extra eye out for our fellow students. No one is to go anywhere alone, if someone needs accompanying be ready to help. The rest of the student body will be notified soon.”

“How do we know the school is safe?” 

“You don’t”. Missy steps down from the dais, walking into the crowd that automatically parts for her. She stops in front of the girl who asked the question, staring her down.

“But you heard what he said, no reason to lose your heads just yet. Just do as you’re told until _Rassilon_ says otherwise.” 

The way she utters Rassilon’s name as if it is poison in her mouth would surely have people accusing her of treason, but the girl in question looks too afraid to do anything but nod, earning a rare smile from Missy.

“Now run along, I’m tired of having you around here. Shoo.” 

Yaz seizes Theta’s arm on the way out, her face betraying her worries. As troubling as Theta finds the whole situation, she hails from a pure blood family. She’s never had to the deal with the prejudices muggle-borns like Yaz and Ryan are faced with on a daily basis. Still, she isn’t about to stand by and let any injustices befall them as long as she can prevent it.

“What do you think this means?” Yaz whispers, dodging the people filing out of the room. Koschei gives them a sour look as he passes, but doesn’t stop to talk. Theta makes a mental note to confront him later.

“I don’t think it is coincidental. Also, don’t you think the house heads were a tad bit avoidant yesterday? It is as if they already knew.”

“I guess it is plausible. Maybe they were just waiting for permission to tell us?”

“Maybe.”

They reach the top of the stairs, the entrance to the dining hall now visible for them. Students are beginning to file into the room, obliviously chattering as they walk by. The ugly feeling in Theta’s gut refuses to let go.

“Either way, something is coming, and it is not going to be good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part of me wanted to write the speech parts more similar to how they talk, but english is not my first language and I have no idea how british accents work so sorry if the conversation sounds a bit unnatural in some places. Also diving headfirst into lore was a mistake and I'm at deep water trying to stay true to the jumbled mess that is the dwu canon. Sorry if some characterisations seem a bit off, I'm but a humble nuwho fan in love with the idea of the classics and the EU, but sadly I have not had the opportunity to read/watch/listen to much of it yet.
> 
> Thank you guys for reading!


	3. Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having loads of fun writing this, so I'm sad to say that updates will probably slow down a bit from here on out because of school work. I'll still try my best to continue updating this thing regularly, but hey at least it is a longer chapter this time!

There is a tense atmosphere in the dining hall when Theta and Yaz enters. Rassilon is just about to finish off his speech regarding the current situation when they sit down. The tables that are usually crowded to the point of it being difficult to find a seat for rhose who arrive late, feels eerily empty despite the still considerable amount of people gathered around them.

Theta strays away from Yaz who has seated herself next to Ryan, seeking out a different person in the crowd. 

He’s easy enough to spot on the far end of the prydon table, seated together with a couple of other seventh years and a handful of starry eyed first years. They give her strange looks when she shoves her way in between them so she can claim the seat next to him. Fortunately, people are distracted by the heaps of delicious food and no one questions her about it any further.

“We need to talk.”

Koschei looks up, brown eyes boring into her.

“If this is about earlier I’m not apologising.”

“It’s not, though I have been wondering.”

He smiles at her, but it feels more mocking than anything. “Then ask me.”

“Did I do something wrong? ‘Cause usually when people are being short with me I have some sort of idea as to why. But not with you. You’ve been testy with me ever since that meeting, and I’d really like to know why.”

Koschei laughs, leaning into her personal space until she can feel his breath on her face, eyes narrowing at her. “I’m not telling you.”

He turns back to his food, stabbing a potato with more force than necessary. Theta lets out a frustrated sigh. A few of the first years across the table are giving them worried looks, to which Theta offers them a sheepish smile. 

She remembers her first few weeks in the castle herself. How everything was huge and overwhelming, even though she had her brothers holding her hands the whole time. She can imagine how grand and scary it must seem through their young eyes. Especially when the people who are supposed to help them get acquainted with it all are openly fighting in front of them. She’s never had to be someone’s role model before.

“Look,” she lowers her voice enough that the first years who have returned to marvel at the heaps of food cannot hear her. “If you don’t like me, fine. I’m not here to win your approval or anything, but at least keep it civil when we are around people to whom we’re supposed to be good examples.”

He stabs another potato, pointing it in her direction with a tired sigh. “Is playing the moral high ground a thing in your family? Or are you just eager to be perceived as ‘better’ than everyone else.”

Theta knows she shouldn’t give in to his goading, but she can’t help but feeling defensive. She crosses her arms, raising an eyebrow. 

“Why, feeling inferior? Must be tough coming from a family rumoured to dabble in the dark arts, always having to work so hard to prove everyone wrong.”

“You could never imagine. It has its advantages though.”

“Oh?”

“People don’t question you when they’re afraid of you.”

She leans back, offering him a knowing smile. “Mad that I’m not under your spell?”

“Quite.”

She’s about to press him for more details when the doors to the dining hall slams open, revealing Missy followed by the defence against the dark arts teacher and self-proclaimed caretaker; a tall man with greying hair donning what appeared to be a ridiculous pair of enchanted sunglasses. Much like Missy, he is quite evasive about his real name, mostly going by professor disco or the caretaker though he had been known to use other names. To Theta however, he is known as great uncle.

It is a relation she is currently not too proud of.

“Gorgons on the perimeter! Everyone out! Prefects take everyone back to the dorms. Don’t look at anything without protective wards.”

The chaos that ensues is massive. Koschei springs into action just as Theta draws her wand from her robes. It takes only one look between the two of them before they’re organising the other prydons into small groups, herding them out of the dining hall.

She was never the best at wards, but with the adrenaline currently pumping through her veins, the spell is effortless to maintain, allowing them to reach the top of the stairs leading into their common room just after Koschei’s group. 

The rest of the prefects is following behind them with their own groups, the common room quickly filling up until there is barely enough space for them all. Theta lets out a relieved breath, her fingers still gripping her wand tightly.

“Is everyone here?”

The group of students are staring wild eyed at her, some of the first years looking close to tears. She hopes someone in the room is better at comforting people than her, as she is not feeling up for the task.

“We’re missing one group,” Ushas states soberly. She is calmly peeking out of the common room entrance, hidden inside a painting of Mount Perdition. Her wards are casting the room in a soft blue glow.

“Yaz,” Ryan whispers, frantic eyes meeting Theta’s own.

“She’s still out there,” Theta realises, pushing her way through the crowd. She remembers the panicked look her friend had given her earlier, guilt for not looking out for her better starting to settle in.

“Where do you think you’re going.”

Koschei has a firm grip on the back of her robe, yanking her back from the door. His eyes have that manic shine to them again, mouth pulled into a tense line. 

“Let go of me.”

His grip only tightens.

“Go to your rooms.”

The students just stare at them, frozen still in shock. Koschei grits his teeth, letting go of Theta so he can turn around to shout.

“Now!”

If the first years weren’t crying before, they definitely are now. Still, no one dares to disobey Koschei’s order apart from a few older students who simply draw back, settling down at the other end of the common room.

Satisfied, Koschei turns back to her. 

“You said it yourself, we need to be here and set a good example. We can’t just go running off out there.” He grins, probably fully aware that he has the upper hand in this argument. Or maybe he’s just happy to be able to use her own words against her.

“I never asked for your permission.”

“Tough. It’s not _my_ permission you need.”

Theta wants to scream at him, but she knows he has a point. She wishes she could bring herself to agree that he is right and leave it at that, but there’s Ryan is still hovering awkwardly behind them, his wand clutched tight in his hand. She can imagine Yaz, placing herself between whatever managed to intercept her and the kids she is supposed to protect. If there is anything Theta can’t handle, it is her friends suffering.

“Don’t you care about the students out there? They’re probably scared out of their minds. If there is anything we can do to help, we can’t refuse.”

They’re circling each other at this point, Koschei’s entire body taut with restless energy. He shakes his head with a laugh, coming to a halt in front of her.

“No I don’t think you see, dear. This is not our responsibility. For once, you should let the ones in charge handle the situation, don’t you think? Although I guess, your family is known for not being able to keep from meddling.”

Theta pushes him in a moment of rage. There is a satisfying thump as his back hits the floor. Infuriatingly enough he has the audacity to grin. She catches Ryan’s eyes for a brief moment, shame burning in her cheeks as Koschei 's laugh echoes through the room. They get a few looks from the other students, who are speaking amongst themselves in hushed tones to not draw any attention.

He stands up, cradling his right wrist which is growing blue from a bruise. “You’re just like him, aren’t you. Never listening, always having to be _right._ Then you just discard us when we won’t go along with your schemes or don’t fit into your plan anymore.”

He turns to Ryan. “Better not stick around until that happens.”

She grits her teeth “That’s not true.” Theta can feel tears starting to pool in her eyes.

“Isn’t it? Tell me love, did it hurt when he left you?”

Theta freezes, the note from her brother feeling heavy in her pocket. Of course it had hurt. The two of them had been inseparable for most of their lives, only beginning to drift apart in the recent years. Still, it had been a shock to them all when he decided to leave. Their mother had been furious for days.

Theta sighs, dragging her palms across her face to wipe away the tears threatening to form. “Answer me honestly this time. You really loved him, didn’t you?”

Koschei hesitates for a moment, looking down. His bangs are falling into his face obscuring his eyes from view.

“My biggest mistake.” He sniffs. “Over it now.”

“Clearly.”

An awkward silence falls over the room. It should have been obvious to her that she hadn’t been the only one who fell victim to her brother’s whims, but she had been to focused on her own pain to even consider the other people in his life. She remembers the momentarily wistful look Clara had given her when mentioning him.

She takes a step in Koschei’s direction, gauging his reaction. She holds out her hand.

“I know you feel betrayed, but trust me, if there is anyone that is unhappy about this situation it is me. I never wanted his position, but now that i have it I can’t simply look away when there is someone who might need me. Would you trust me, just this one time?”

Koschei looks down on her extended hand, then at her face. His lips are trembling slightly, facial expression conflicted. “You expect me to trust you?”

“I know I probably don’t deserve it, but I’m not him and we’re only losing time standing around arguing.”

Koschei stares at her outstretched hand, then shifts his attention to Ushas who is still holding the ward in place.

“Tell her this is stupid.”

Ushas gives them a deadpan look, clearly not interested in getting involved in their argument. If looks could kill, she’d be terrifying. She has dropped her ward, but the portrait is still open to pass through.

“I’m closing this thing down, if you want to go, you do it now.”

“Thank you,” Theta sighs, Ushas only granting her an exasperated look. She walks up to the painting, ready to step out when Koschei steps up next to her.

“It’ll be safer with two,” He explains, not meeting her eyes. She grins, happy to accept his tentative display of trust.

“I’ll come too,” Ryan offers, only to be shoved back by Koschei.

“No you’re not. I’ve already got enough with making sure she returns unharmed. Prefects only.”

Theta grimaces. “Sorry Ryan, he’s right. It’s too dangerous.”

“You’ve got to find her, Theta.”

“I will.”

Koschei rolls his eyes, stepping through the door frame. The painting flickers behind Theta as she exits after him, signalling that the pathway has been closed for now.

* * *

The staircase room is so quiet she can hear herself breathing, and even the pictures that are spread out across the room are void of their usual occupants. She’s not sure if a gorgon is actually capable of harming them, but it would seem they’re not taking their chances. 

“What now?”

“Trace our steps back?”

“That’s your plan? If she was intercepted she’s most likely not along the usual route.”

Koschei begins to descend the stairs, stopping at the platform below where multiple other staircases are connecting to various corridors leading into the depths of the castle.

“Do you have anything of hers on you?”

“What? No, why would I- you can’t be serious.”

“Deadly.”

“Tracking spells are highly unreliable.”

“More unreliable than just wandering around?”

Theta frowns, searching her pockets for something to use. While she and Yaz hang out nearly every day, she has little reason to carry any of her friend’s possessions on her person. Her fingers find a couple of gobstones, some string, some loose change and her brother’s note crumpled up at the bottom of her pocket.

She pulls it out, grimacing.

“I showed her this a couple of days ago, but I doubt it is enough to get a fix on her. If anything, It’ll only lead you to me, and you already have me here.”

“Worth a try, if I can isolate her biological signature.” To Theta’s horror he start unfolding the paper.

“Don’t!”

“Why not?”

“It’s personal. It’s very rude to read personal notes without permission. Definitely rude.”

“You gave it to me.”

“Not to read. Forget it, can you get a read on it or not?”

Koschei sighs, touching his wand to the paper, whispering some incantation Theta does not recognise. The paper starts to glow in a mass of colours separating until there is three different spots each in a different colour. Two of them are nearly identical, giving off a vibrant yellow glow, while the other is a smaller spot closer to a soft burgundy. 

“That’s the one,” Theta point to the burgundy, relieved that Koschei doesn’t question why there are two yellow ones. He taps his wand to the burgundy spot. “ _Sequitur.”_

The spot lifts from the paper, turning into a glowing orb that hovers above them for a second before it starts moving. Theta can’t help but grin, barely taking the time to cast a ward spell before she is chasing it down the winding hallways of the castle.

It is difficult to follow the orb at first as it shoots ahead at a merciless speed, forcing them to run to keep up. Fortunately it slows down after a couple of minutes stopping at a closed door which it keeps bumping into.

“That leads to the forbidden section. Why would they go there?”

Koschei doesn’t answer her, reaching out to turn the doorknob. The door is unlocked, opening with a low creak. The orb quickly finds its way through the doorway, but to Theta’s relief its pace remains more sedated after that. 

The corridor is dark and smells like dust and stale air, the only sign that someone has been there recently being the tangy scent a tempest jinx leaves behind. They walk slowly, listening for any signs of life. 

At one point an owl outside the windows hoots as it flies by but otherwise, the hallway remains quiet. They pass several doorways leading into rooms that holds various supplies and several rooms they don’t know the nature of.

The orb eventually comes to a halt in the middle of the corridor, hovering lazily before dissipating.

“There’s nothing here.”

“I know,” Koschei sighs irritably. He tries to tap the paper again, but the orb it produces instantly fades away again.

“Guess you really can’t trust a tracking spell.”

“It must have led us here for a reason.”

A bang sounds through the room, startling them. There is a series of knocks, seemingly coming from one of the walls, which fades into a quiet whimper followed by crying. Theta and Koschei share a confused look, approaching the wall cautiously.

The wall does not appear to have any doors, but there is definitely sobbing coming from the other side. Theta steels herself, ready to jinx whatever might show up on the other side as Koschei mutters the revealing spell.

“ _Revelio”._

A door handle appears from thin air, the sobbing stopping a second later. There is a tense few seconds where neither Theta nor Koschei dare to open it, allowing the occupant on the other side to reveal itself. They both raise their wands subconsciously, the incantation for a jinx lingering on Theta’s tongue.

The door opens to reveal a young girl, her bright red pryon robes dishevelled and eyes red from crying. Theta let’s go of a breath she’d been holding, bowing down to hug the girl who begins sobbing again at the sight of them. Koschei leans back against the wall, looking mildly uncomfortable.

“Thank Gallifrey, we thought we were in the wrong place.”

The girl sniffles. She can’t be older than 14, her big black hair tied back by a yellow bandana. There doesn’t appear to be anyone with her, which is worrying, but Theta is too relieved to have found someone from the missing group to care.

“What’s your name, where are the others?”

“Bill. We were ambushed. I ran as fast as I could back the way we came. I don’t know when I lost them.”

“Where does this passage lead to?” Koschei asks, the tip of his wand lit with the _lumos_ spell. There is a spiral staircase on the other side of the hidden door, stretching into the dark.

“Second floor corridors. It comes out not far from the charms classroom.”

“Great. Let’s go then.”

“What, you’re not going back there,” Bill hisses, eyeing Koschei with disdain. 

“I’m sorry, but we still need to ensure the rest of the group is safe. If you want to head back he can take you.”

“You’re not going alone.”

“Yes I am.”

“Theta.” 

“I told you to trust me, didn’t I?”

“You also told me you’re not like you’re brother. Prove it.” He smirks. Theta wants to argue, but Bill interrupts her.

“Whoa, calm down. We’ll go together, yeah? What’s the worst thing that could happen.”

“I won’t let anything happen to you, Bill,” Theta promises, taking her hand in her own as they proceed down the stairs. Bill seems to have calmed down considerably since they found her, but the steel grip she keeps on Theta’s hand tells her that she’s putting up a brave front. It makes Theta’s heart hurt, but she comforts herself with the fact that they’re safer together.

The passage leads into the second floor corridor just as Bill claimed. It is as empty and quiet as every other place they previously passed through. Koschei walks in front of them, wand ready. The corridor remains empty until they round a corner, the silhouette of a human visible at the end.

At first, Theta is afraid it is the gorgons, but whoever it is doesn’t move as they approach. It isn’t until they’re only about five metres away that Theta realises why. Beside her, Bill let’s out a whimper.

They’re standing face with face to Yaz; a Yaz who has been turned into stone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you believe there isn't a pre-existing tracking spell in the hp universe? Sorry if anyone speaks latin, I obviously don't and google translate is my friend.
> 
>   
> Thank you guys so much for reading!  
> You can find me at tumblr as Ilunefulltsinn


	4. Days

Despite the jarring aftermath of the attacks, school resumes as usual the next day. However, it is clear that people are having trouble putting their hearts into it, too caught up in the fear and uncertainty. It permeates the school like an ugly scent that refuses to dissipate.

Students are whispering amongst each other in the hallways, casting her worried glances when they think she’s not looking. The breakfast table turns into a chaotic mix of food and owls carrying letters from worried parents. Some students are considering leaving, questioning Rassilon’s ability to keep another attack from happening.

The classes feel like an anxious cloud has settled over them, dampening the mood to the point where even the teachers struggle to remain cheery (though Missy does an excellent job of ignoring the tense mood, remaining her gleeful self.) 

Professor Chesterton, the muggle studies teachers tries to lighten the mood by showing them a weird contraption called a roomba which allegedly has a purpose close to that of an house elf, but not even that is enough to make people forget the possible perils lurking around the corner.

Koschei is strangely absent from most classes he shares with Theta, barely acknowledging her at all when he’s there despite their little moment the previous day. Then again, he seems oddly tense, wild eyes darting around at all times as if something might attack him if he isn’t prepared for it.

It turns out Theta might not have been too wrong when he turns up with a bruised eye a couple of days later, though one look from him is enough to make Theta withhold her questions. It still makes her skin itch with curiosity.

After a good week of him vanishing without a trace for hours on end, Theta feels ready to burst. Rassilon has momentarily suspended all prefects from duty for the time being, leaving patrolling to the teachers, who have gone from disappearing to wherever it is teachers go outside of lessons to standing around in the corridors, courtyards and other public spaces. Their watchful eyes feel suffocating to Theta, necessary as it might be. The only free space that remains are the dorms.

And of course, there is the sick wing. No one asks any questions in the sick wing.

The sick wing is perpetually bright. Situated southern part of the castle, the tall stained glass windows are in perfect position to filter in the gallifreyan sunlight, the room usually giving off a dream like atmosphere. 

Theta doesn’t like it there. The rows of beds that are usually empty now hold several students of various age groups, their petrified bodies stuck in permanent unrest. As morbid as it may sound, Theta almost wishes they had just left them standing, the unnatural positions making them look less like humans and more like art installations gently tucked into the sheets.

At the far end of the room, the school’s physicians, Martha and Owen, are arguing in hushed tones as they pour over books and herbs, yet to find an actual cure. Also, there is the severed gorgon’s head sitting on their work station staring blankly back at her every time Theta chances a glance in its direction. No one knows who did off with her, but she was found in the great hall entrance after everything had calmed down. Judging by the blood splattered everywhere, whoever did it had not been gentle.

“She’s going to be alright.”

“I know.”

“Once saw Martha magically heal one of me mates whose eyes had been cursed. If anyone can figure this out, it’ll be her.”

“I  _ know _ .”

Ryan is seated next to Theta by Yaz’ bed, a box of chocolate frogs in his lap. It’s stupid really, they won’t do her any good as it is, but Theta acknowledges that people have different ways to cope. She desperately wishes her own didn’t involve blaming herself. That, and itching to getting to the bottom of the whole thing. Arcadia is regarded as one of the safest institutions in the country. It shouldn’t have been possible for the gorgons to find their way in. That is, unless someone let them in.

There is a yell at the other side of the room followed by a thump as he gorgon head tumbles off the work station, the snakes serving as its hair still twitching and hissing. Owen is trying to shove it into a bucket using a mop, a sight that might have been comical if the situation was different.

Theta stares down at her hands that are folded in her lap, wringing her fingers restlessly.

“She was so scared when they told us about the disappearances. I shouldn’t have left her.”

“You did what you had to do.”

“I could have saved her,” Theta snaps. She instantly regrets it as Ryan’s face falls, his attention shifting back to Yaz again. Theta sighs, raking her fingers through her hair in frustration.

“I’m sorry. I’m just… this whole thing is bothering me. There’s something I’m missing and I just can’t make it make  _ sense _ .”

“You tell me.”

“Why use gorgons? Of course it generates fear, but if this is an attack against muggle-borns, they’d have no way of knowing they were actually going to affect the right victims. Gorgons just aren’t practical. Sure, you can make them do your dirty work but they don’t differentiate between victims. They physically can’t ‘cause anyone who gets in their way immediately becomes a target.”

“What if it wasn’t?”

“What?”

“An attack on muggle-borns. They could be unrelated. Maybe Yaz was just unlucky.”

“Ryan Sinclar, you’re a genius!”

“Wait, where are you going?”

“I got some ideas! I’ll see you later!

* * *

_ Dearest sister _

_ Thank you for your letter, are you doing well? I’ve been keeping an eye on the ministry, Saxon in particular, though nothing seems out of the ordinary on our front. Uncle suspects they’re withholding information from us, though we haven’t found any solid proof of that as of yet. While I cannot currently give you all the information you wish for, I can tell you that I passed the map onto Jack, who again lost it in a bet with a certain quidditch captain in his last year. Hope you’re not getting into too much trouble, mum would have a fit. Also, Brax said to tell you hi and that he misses you dearly, though I’m not entirely certain he wasn’t being ironic.  _

_ Miss you dearly (unironically), John _

Idris coos from her perch on the windowsill, her feathers ruffling in pride when Theta attaches a quick “thank you” note to her leg. She pauses to run her fingers through the owl’s tawny feathers in appreciation, a pang of homesickness washing over her. Despite having been the family owl for well over a decade, she’s the fastest Theta knows of, always getting letters delivered where they need to in record time. In addition, she seems to have an uncanny ability to know where she is needed before anyone else does, almost always available when her owners need her. It’s quite amazing even by magical standards.

She rummages through her pockets, finding a couple of dried worms to feed her.

“It's not much, I’m sorry. Make sure they reward you handsomely when you return to them, won’t you old girl.” Theta smiles as Idris rubs up against her hand one last time before taking off, her form soon only a distant spot on the horizon.

She doesn’t waste any time to follow up her new lead.

The quidditch captain in question is not particularly difficult to locate. Corsair is cleaning out of the prydon team’s shed when Theta approaches her, a huge grin breaking out on her face when she realises she has company.

“Theta! It’s been a while.” 

“So it has, you’ve been keeping yourself busy.”

“This is going to be a good season, I can feel it. The newbies are very promising. Those patrexes won’t know what hit them.” She pats a newly restrained bludger, rising from where she had been stowing away the balls, dusting her hands off against each other. “I take it you’re not here to hear me talk about quidditch though. What can I help you with?”

“I’m looking for a certain artefact. A little something that used to belong to Jack Harkness up until a couple of years ago. ”

Corsair narrows her eyes, raising an eyebrow. “Are you now?”

Theta worries her lip between her teeth, unsure how to go about the matters. On one hand, Corsair’s second passion aside from quidditch is being mischief incarnate. If she can be convinced that the outcome will be satisfyingly hilarious, it shouldn’t be hard to get her on board. On the other hand, Theta is well aware of that she’s asking for one of the most prized possessions among mischievous students throughout Arcadia’s history.

“What would you want with such a thing, Theta? While you don’t exactly play by the rules, you never intentionally try to cause mayhem.” Her eyes flicker down to the prefects badge pinned to the lapel of Theta’s robes. “Especially not now.”

Theta sputters, crossing her arms over her chest so the badge is covered by them, to which Corsaire only laughs. It is a beautiful sound, energetic and carefree. She bounds over pulling her into a hug from behind so she can rest her chin on top of Theta’s head.

“No need to be shy Thete, I think it suits you. In fact, I don’t think anyone is more fitting for the job. Unlike certain  _ others, _ you’re not in it for the power trip.”

Theta sighs, freeing herself of Corsair’s embrace. “Then you know I’ll go about this responsibly.”

Corsaire sighs, crossing her arms. “See that’s not the problem. I’ll admit I have become rather fond of it. I’d rather not part with it when it took me so much to earn it in the first place. I think you’ll understand.”

Theta has to stop herself from outright whining. While she considers herself a reasonable person, she can’t deny that she has a strong underlying need to have things go her way. She can almost hear Koschei mocking her for it in her mind, resorting to a pout. 

“I’m not out after taking it off your hands. I’m only asking you lend it to me. Something’s not right, and I need to get to the bottom of this.”

Corsair sighs, leaning back against the wall of the small equipment shed. 

“Always such a shining sense of responsibility. I admire you, you know.”

“So you’ll lend it to me then?”

There is a tense second where Theta thinks she might have misread the situation, Corsair considering her, grey eyes inscrutable. Then she reaches into a satchel placed on one of the shed’s shelves, pulling out what at first glance appears to be a blank piece of parchment.

“I guess I will, though you owe me one. I’m not sure if this will help you in whatever little scheme you’ve got planned. I’m not even sure how you found out I had it, but I trust you to not snitch on me.”

“I have my sources,” Theta smiles. “And I would never. You’re my friend after all.”

“Then I trust you to use this responsibly. The spell is ‘I solemnly swear I’m up to no good’, ‘mischief managed’ to wipe it.” Corsair smirks. “Knowing you that shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Me? Never done a bad thing in my life. You should try it, might suit you.”

“Where would the fun in that be? Try to keep it out of sight from the teachers. If they confiscate it, I’ll make sure you’ll be the one to retrieve it.”

Theta can feel the excitement bubbling underneath her skin, drawing her wand. “I’ll make sure to remember that.

* * *

_ She feels sluggish, her body moving as if she’s stuck underwater, her surroundings flashing before her. Somewhere someone is screaming, but she can’t make out the source, her heart beating at a panicked pace because she know she won’t make it in time to save them. She turns to find the stone faced figure of her mother standing over her as the taste of blood fills her mouth from a split lip. Then there is Yaz, tears streaming down her face as Theta approaches, her lips moving but no sound coming out. Someone is sobbing, she is not entirely sure it isn’t herself. The sobbing grows louder and louder and louder until it is nearly unbearable. _

She blinks her eyes open, thrashing to free herself from the confines of her bed sheets. Her heart is hammering in her chest, her body damp with sweat. Gritting her teeth, she takes a moment to calm herself down. Nightmares aren’t uncommon for her, but they’ve never become any easier coping with either . Her head still feels stuffy, the sound of crying still echoing through her mind.

It takes her a moment to realise the sobbing is not coming from inside her head.

The rest of the seventh year dorm is awfully quiet, the source of the noise not anywhere in sight. It might be faint, but it is definitely there. Taking care not to wake the others, Theta grabs her blanket then carefully makes her way down to the common room. The stone steps feels frigid under her bare feet, making her wish she had worn slippers. She drapes the blanket over her shoulders, grateful for the little warmth it offers her.

She almost literally stumbles over him, his small form almost invisible where he is curled up in a quilt from one of the sofas in front of the nearly extinguished fireplace. He turns abruptly as he notices her presence, eyes bloodshot and shoulders drawn up in a defensive position only to relax when he realises it is her.

Koschei settles back into his initial position, his back turned to her as a shiver wracks his body. He lets out a ragged breath, fingers twitching uselessly against the checkered carpet.

“Come to pity me?” 

Theta doesn’t answer, she’s not sure if she knows how to with neither of them entirely comfortable facing the vulnerability he is currently displaying. Instead she sits down by his head, resting her back against the edge of the fireplace. He sits up, taking a series of deep breaths that seems to do nothing to calm him.

His entire body is still shaking with whatever demons haunt him. His eyes are screwed shut and his lips are pulled back in a snarl as the air wheezes between his teeth in uncontrolled breaths. It is painful to watch and Theta can’t help but feel like she is intruding. Yet, leaving him alone feels like a whole different sort of betrayal. Her mind drifts to her brother, but she is quick to shove the thought away. Better not dredge up topics that feel sore for them both.

She doesn’t know how long they sit there, but eventually, his breathing calms down until it is barely noticeable anymore. Theta shifts, leaning forward to rest her upper body on her knees, her head cradled on top of her arms. There is a brief moment where she wonders whether Koschei is aware that she’s still there, but then his eyes blinks open, seeking out her own.

“What are you doing here?”

His eyes are bloodshot, tear tracks still not entirely dry on his cheeks. His hands are still twitching in his lap empty of anything to fidget with.

“Couldn’t sleep. Nightmares.”

Koschei nods, eyes closing. She doesn’t doubt that he has his fair share of those himself. Although they haven’t really talked much up until recently, she knows his backstory isn’t entirely happy. Everyone who has paid even a little attention to the happenings of the wizarding world does.

In that respect, they’re not all that different; carrying the burdens of strict parents and their families’ history on their backs. At least she had someone to share it with. 

“Always fancied myself a dreamer. Didn’t mean it like this though.”

Maybe there’s a humourless smile on his lips for a second. Maybe she can’t keep her eyes from fixating on it, however brief. There is a silent understanding passing between them as they huddle into blankets, two satellites orbiting ever closer, just avoiding a collision course. 

She’s not sure if it’s because she’s overtired, but she suddenly feels like a touch starved moth gravitating to the only source of light around. Maybe he feels it too, his body swaying slightly in her direction until their foreheads are touching, the sensation of another living person so very welcome in her post-nightmare wasteland.

Every sensation feels strangely amplified, their moment intimate without ever progressing past that one point of touch.

She briefly wonders when she began to pay so much attention to him when she comes to the conclusion that even in the dark he is beautiful to behold. Her hand is tracing the outline of the fading bruise around his left eye before she can stop herself, his eyes fluttering shut at the sensation, lips slightly parted.

She thinks it is the most peaceful she’s ever seen him, the restless energy that is always burning so bright in him somewhat quelled for now. She isn’t sure who initiates it, but they’re only millimetres from touching lips when the harsh reality settles in. 

Whatever feelings she has towards him is something she has yet to figure out with herself. Born from circumstances of dependency and the shared trauma of being left behind, she isn’t entirely sure what they have is something solid enough to build a relationship on. Does she want a relationship? Even if she does, he doesn’t deserve another heartbreak at the hands of her family.

She turns her head in the last minute, his breath ghosting against her cheek. Koschei lets out a surprised noise when she pushes him away, hand lingering on his chest for a second too long. She doesn’t dare meet his eyes, afraid of what she might find.

“We should head back to bed,” she states, still not looking up. She can hear him swallow, then the rustling of his clothes as he sits up.

“Yeah, we should,” His voice is still hoarse from crying, laced with fatigue. They don’t speak as they return to the dorms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I struggled a bit to get this chapter to come together, and I'm not entirely sure if I liked how it turned out but oh well. 
> 
> The corsair is based off the incarnation seen in the thirteenth doctor comics because I'm absolutely in love with her and I'm sad we haven't seen more of the character in TV canon. Next couple of chapters will be thorsair heavy so for those of you only here for the thoschei i apologise, but I promise we will get back to that eventually! (Unrelated fun fact, while researching age differences in the doctors for future chapters I found out that Jodie and Matt are actually the same age in real life, this literally could not have worked out better for me.)
> 
> Anyway thank you guys for reading, and an extra thank you to those of you who were kind enough to leave comments and kudos. I can't express how excited I am to see people interacting with my fic!
> 
> As usual I can be found at tumblr as ilunefulltsinn if anyone wants to geek out about doctor who!


	5. Betrayals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter got a bit long but I couldn't find anywhere good to split it up, so enjoy this slightly longer part.  
> Heads up that the last part will get a bit explicit though nothing too graphic (please be kind, I've never written anything smutty before despite having told myself I would do it for years and I'm already dying of embarrassment)

Theta has been pouring over the map the entire week. The whole debacle with the gorgons and Rassilon being up to the ears in worried letters and complaints from parents and other influential voices of the wizarding world has led to the teachers going a bit easier on them. Theta isn’t sure whether it is pity, or if they’re simply too caught up in helping Rassilon clean up the mess that is the academy’s reputation, but she’s content. She’s never had this much free time before.

Her search has been futile so far. She spent the first day exploring all the hidden entrances to the school, looking for clues as to how the gorgons got in or possibly who aided them. So far the majority of them appeared to have known little use in recent times, apart from the ones used to sneak out to the village in the drylands. Of course, that didn’t rule them out, though Theta knew she’d avoid said passages herself if she had been behind the attack. Too high of a chance of running into someone who might get away. The tunnels were decidedly not built for a chase.

She’d also tried to monitor the entire castle to see if anyone who didn’t belong on the school grounds would show up, but apart from a couple of ministry officials and journalists who came to see Rassilon, the map refused to turn up anything.

Most interestingly, and she would not admit to the fact that she has been spying on him, the map did show her where Koschei went he went whenever he was avoiding classes. However, it turned out he was just helping out around the place, often in the kitchens or begrudgingly following her great uncle (and sometimes Missy) around when he was doing his caretaker routines. 

When questioned about it, the old man merely raised an eyebrow at her, claiming that it was all part of Koschei getting extra classes due to being ahead in his studies and shouldn’t she try to focus on giving a better effort herself? So much for being family.

Safe to say by the time Sunday came around, she was both disappointed and tired of the whole thing. She’d never been the most patient person there was.

“What are you doing?”

Theta instinctively covers the map with her body, her head twisting around to see Koschei standing behind her. She hisses a quiet “mischief managed”, praying that the map will wipe itself before turning around, beaming up at him.

They’re in the courtyard, Theta hiding behind the great fountain in the middle of it; in retrospect probably not the best hiding place. She’d been following him around for the better part of the day, hoping to get some further leads as to what “extra classes” really means. Not that she suspects him or anything, but with the gorgon case running cold, she can’t deny he’s the most interesting thing to latch onto at the moment.

Koschei raises an impatient eyebrow, still towering over her still seated form. She tries to pull of an innocent grin, shoving the map into her bag. His eyes follow the movement sharply.

“Just catching up on some reading. Thought I’d get some fresh air while I was at it. The library gets awfully stuffy, can’t concentrate.”

Theta stands up then proceeds to brush off dirt from her robes in the most inconspicuous way she can muster. She smiles cheerfully making a move to leave only to be dragged back by her wrist, Koschei’s eyes burning into her. She doesn’t make a sound as he reaches into her bag, pulling out the rolled up parchment that is her map, only letting go of her so he can straighten it out.

To her relief, his frown quickly turns into a look of confusion. He turns it around a couple of times as if it might reveal its secrets if he only looks long enough.

“This is blank,” he deadpans. 

“Ah, I must’ve I grabbed the wrong one then. Awful clutter, my desk. Never know what you will find.”

“You were reading a blank page?” He gives her a look of doubt, holding the parchment up in front of her to underline his point. She’s not sure she’s ever seen such a look of exasperation before.

“Guess I zoned out.”

They stare each other down, both daring the other to reveal their secrets, none of them willing to give in.

“Ridiculous,” Koschei eventually mutters, handing the map back to her. 

Theta accepts it gratefully, shoving it into her bag. It would be one thing to retrieve it should a teacher get hold of it, but she’s certain Corsair would have her head if she let it fall into the hands of someone like Koschei. 

“Not going to mention the obvious then?”

“What?”

“Come one, Theta. You’re not exactly subtle, I know you’ve been following me.” 

Theta gives him a sheepish smile. There’s a million answers she could have given him from outright denial to shamelessly admitting to his accusations. She settles for a half-truth, which is automatically also a half-lie slipping off her tongue with ease.

“You never told me about the bruise. I was worried you were in danger, and frankly I was curious. Can’t help but meddle, me.”

His left hand instinctively flies up to his face, fingers tracing the area by his eye that still shows the fading remains of his injury. There’s a look on his face that she can’t identify the nature of, eyes distant and his lips slightly parted as if in deep thought. He sighs.

“If you must know, I got into a fight. Some people… well they don’t all agree with my status.” He smiles humorlessly. Theta can’t tell if he’s lying or not. While their interactions has skirted towards something friendly as of late, there’s obviously still a layer of distrust between them. The mere idea that he might’ve gotten in a fight over his prefect position seems a bit far fetched to Theta. While there are plenty of people who would have reason to dislike him, and the fact that he does show a degree of smugness over it doesn’t add up with the fact that she doesn’t know of anyone who would be willing to risk getting into trouble over something so trivial.

“Sounds rough,” Theta mutters. 

“Not rough enough to warrant you following me around for an entire week. Can’t get enough of me, love?”

So he knows she’s lying too. Theta curses herself for not having been more careful. She was certain he was too occupied to notice her, having stayed a good ten metres away at all times, sticking to the shadows whenever necessary.

“Or maybe you’re just jealous,” he drawls. “Not the brightest when it comes to schoolwork, but I can assure you your dear uncle Basil still loves you despite your shortcomings. If you need tutoring, you need just ask you know.”

She can feel the embarrassment burn hot in her cheeks, still unable to believe that she was ratted out by her own family, and to Koschei nonetheless. She lowkey feels like finding herself a quiet place to sulk for a while, not able to stand his smug expression.

“Fine, you got me. I just wanted to know what you were up to going missing like that all the time. Are we done?”

“Actually,” he hesitates, suddenly growing serious. “I need to speak with you.”

“Now?”

His eyes darts around, making sure that they’re truly alone this time, then he drags her over to the pavilion at the edge of the courtyard;a place that’s usually crowded with people playing gobstones or trading chocolate frog cards on a normal day. As most places have become recently, it is perfectly empty.

Koschei sits himself down on the floor, waiting for her to follow suit. There’s an intense look in his eyes that make her skin crawl for some reason. She hesitates, hands clutching the strap of her bag nervously. 

“This is _important._ I was going to tell you earlier, but I need you to trust me.”

“Trust you,” Theta echoes. She kneels down in front of him, placing her bag in her lap.

“Has Rassilon spoken to you yet?”

Theta narrows her eyes. “Why would he?”

“Your family is influential, but you’re also known to cause trouble. Any person in power would want to know who their allies are. And well, trust me when I say you’re quite good at attracting attention to yourself.”

“I try my best. Still don’t get how this has anything to do with me.”

“You’re digging into dangerous business, it has everything to do with you. If he approaches you, don’t believe anything he says. It is a lie. He is not on your side.”

“And you are?”

He stares at her with a pained expression, eyes begging her to believe him. “I believe I am.”

“Theta!”

The reply Theta was putting together is cut short, both of them shooting up to their feet, spotting Ryan running towards them from the other side of the courtyard. He comes to a halt in front of them, doubling over to catch his breath before gripping Theta by the shoulders.

“She’s awake! Yaz is awake!”

* * *

Whatever warning Koschei tried to give her is quickly forgotten as she and Ryan sprints to the infirmary. They stumble through the door, completely out of breath yet buzzing with excitement.

It earns her a scathing look from Owen, but she ignores it. He’s the least of her concerns now as she spots Yaz sitting up in her bed, talking to Martha who is scribbling notes onto a clipboard.

A feeling that is a mix of relief and guilt and everything that’s been stewing inside her since the attack washes over her.

“Yaz!”

“Careful!” Martha chides, but allows the two of them to run up to Yaz’ bed, pulling her into an awkwardly angled group hug. There are tears in Theta’s eyes but she blinks them away, beaming as she releases Yaz. 

“How are you feeling?”

Yaz wrinkles her nose, her expression slightly dazed. “Odd. It’s like I just woke from a _very_ long and confusing dream.”

“She’ll need a few days to recover,” Martha supplies. “But she should be good to go after we’ve done a few more check ups.”

Theta nods. Martha is still looking at her as if waiting for her to do something. 

“What she means to say,” Owen sighs, pushing himself between them readying a stethoscope. “Is that you should leave now. We've got work to do.”

“Oh. Right then.”

“I’ll see you later Theta, we can catch up then, yeah?”

“Yeah. Absolutely. We’ll just pop out then. Ryan?”

“See you later Yaz.”

They almost run right into Corsair as they exit the infirmary doors, narrowly dodging the surprised quidditch captain.

“Easy there. What’s got you in a hurry?”

“Stuff to do,” Theta shrugs. Which is a lie. She has no idea what to do now. All she wants is to catch up with her friends, possibly go do some things she definitely shouldn’t. Theta blinks up at Corsair who is still standing in front of them, looking perplexed.

“What are _you_ doing here?”

“Thought I should check in with one of my teammates who got petrified. Heard they were doing better now.”

“Ah, wouldn’t bother right now. Owen seemed a bit tetchy, though they’ll likely be released later today!”

“Is that so.” She reaches a hand up to remove her flying goggles, grey eyes seeking out Theta’s own. “How’s your little search going by the way?” 

Theta gawks at her. She did not expect Corsair to ask about that with Ryan present. While she’s certain he wouldn’t exactly go running to a teacher should he find out, she’d rather not he knew that she’d been getting into potentially dangerous situations alone. Her friends could be ever so protective of her.

“What search,” Ryan asks, predictably enough.

“Just something to pass the time.” She doesn’t let go of Corsair’s now amused gaze, silently begging her to not elaborate. Ryan looks between them, clearly confused.

“I was just helping Theta out a little. Thought it might be fun, though sadly she doesn’t really give me any juicy updates.”

She’s got a hand on Theta’s shoulder now, head cocked to the side in mock disappointment. “Do tell me if you get bored of that though, I could show you some _real_ fun.”

Corsair throws in a wink for good measure, turning around to leave.

“I hope to see you both at the quidditch match tomorrow then!”

She disappears round the corner, leaving Theta with burning cheeks and a heart that is threatening to break out of her rib cage.

Ryan is staring after her, equally dumbfounded. He turns to Theta with big eyes.

“Did I miss something?”

* * *

While Koschei was pretty clear about her not needing to follow him around, her curiosity isn’t entirely satisfied, so she allows herself to lie in bed, studying the map while waiting for the quidditch game to start. 

It’s not just for the sake of keeping him under control she does it, or so she tells herself anyway. Not that any suspicious figures shows up in the map while she studies it. She is however reminded that she should probably head down to the bleachers as Koschei’s name suddenly begins to move in their general direction.

For the first time in weeks the school feels truly alive, people chattering excitedly with each other, some making bets on the two teams that will play in today’s match. Theta rushes past them all, making a beeline for the quidditch pitch on which the two teams are already warming up.

She can spot Corsair soaring high above the pitch, her bright red robes fluttering wildly in the wind. Many of her housemates have donned a similar red in the form of face paints and banners, their cheers echoing through the air. On the other side of the pitch, the cerulean house is waving their light blue banners, their cheers slightly less rowdy than that of the prydonians.

Theta finds Yaz and Ryan sitting together with a group of other students from their year, Ryan looking especially fired up for the match. Theta smiles at them, slightly bummed out that she can’t seem to find Koschei anywhere. If the map was right, he should definitely have gotten there before her, but he is strangely absent.

They’re halfway into the game, the prydonians leading only by 20 points, when she spots him. The crowd is roaring around her, barely noticing her elbowing her way through. By the time she reaches the sheds at the northern side of the pitch, he’s nowhere to be seen, a curse slipping through her lips.

There’s another round of cheers as she makes it to the area behind the sheds, a bludger zooming past over her head, then making a u-turn back to the pitch. Koschei is kneeling on the ground with his back to her, fiddling with something that’s obstructed from her view.

“What are you doing.”

He spins around, his wand at her throat before she can even think about pulling her own. He’s breathing heavily, shoulders tense like a string wound too tight.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

“Yet I am. I’ll ask again, what are you doing?”

There’s a cage on the ground behind him, small creatures hissing up at them from the inside. Theta frowns, trying to navigate around Koschei, but he presses his wand more firmly into her skin.

“Firedrakes,” Theta concludes.

“Rassilon’s to be specific,” Koschei whispers, glancing back to the cage. “They’ve been in his family for quite a while.”

“What do you plan to do with them?”

“What do you think?” Koschei glowers at her. He lowers his wand, backing away until he can pick up the cage. The firedrakes growls pathetically at him, trying to bite at his fingers. While not intimidating in size, Theta knows they can cause their fair share of chaos. 

“Put it down,” Theta orders. She draws her own wand, getting into a fighting stance to which Koschei responds with grasping the cage’s latch. 

“You can’t stop me Theta.”

“I don’t get it. Why would you do this?”

“I have no choice.”

“That’s a lie, you always have a choice. Now, I don’t want to hurt you, so put that down then we can talk.” Theta tries to step closer to him, but he shies away, walking backwards until his back hits one of the sheds.

“You don’t get it do you?” he snarls, fingers trembling on the latch. The firedrakes are getting agitated within the cage, clawing at the walls with their wings.

He’s laughing hysterically now, his body doubling protectively over the cage. Theta wonders if she’d be fast enough to wring it from his grip before he has the chance to open the latch, but his fingers are curled around it. He wouldn’t even need a second. For now, she decides getting him to talk is her best chance. She’s good at talking.

“You want to know? How I got the bruise?”

Theta pauses. She already knows she isn’t going to like the answer, his pained expression already betraying him.

“Because of _you._ ” He spits the last word.

“Not true,” Theta protests. “You’re lying.”

“Why would I? You’re always meddling in things you don’t understand without thinking about the consequences. That night with the gorgons, you got awfully close to the truth. I was the one who let you leave the common room, helped you even. My superiors didn't take it very well.”

Theta shakes her head. “No, I’ve been tracking you. I know the name of every outsider wizard who’s entered the school, and none of them have been talking to you.”

Koschei snorts, levelling her with a serious gaze. “Typical wizard arrogance wouldn’t you say? Doesn’t ever stop to consider that there are other ways to get messages across than an owl or showing up in the flesh. No one would ever suspect a house elf.”

“The kitchens.”

Koschei nods. Theta curses, not believing she could have been so stupid. Her great uncle and Missy had never been around when he was lurking around in the kitchens. Nor had any other wizards. She has to admit using the house elves was a clever move.

The few seconds of her berating herself is enough time for Koschei to unleash the firedrakes, loud screeches sounding across the field. She watches with horror as they fly onto the pitch, setting the robes of the players on fire and causing general mayhem in the stands. The teachers fortunately spring into action immediately, the sparks of stunning jinxes fly across the field.

Turning back, anger burning in her chest, she sees that Koschei has dropped the cage, taking in the chaos with an open mouthed grin. 

She tackles him.

There is a moment where he tries to fight her, but she quickly manages to get the upper hand with her entire weight on his chest, arms pinned by her knees. There isn’t much he can do but kick and growl in frustration. Theta pockets his wand which he dropped in the scuffle, taking in the sight of him underneath her.

“You didn’t answer me properly earlier. Why?”

He giggles at her, which is probably the most infuriating response he could have come up with, prompting Theta to lift him up by his chest and slam him back into the ground. He coughs violently as his breath is knocked out of him in the impact.

Theta screams. “Why!”

“I told you,” he’s still coughing, grin wiped from his face. “It’s Rassilon. He’s got a finger in all of the disappearances and the dark forces that are on the rise. It's no secret his family has never been a fan of muggleborns or other species than his own. This, the gorgons, everything was to weaken his credibility.”

“Tell me why I should believe you.”

“I can’t”.

She stares him down, looking for any trace of dishonesty, but all she can gather is that he seems awfully tired. There are dark circles underneath his eyes, his hair messy and in need of a wash. 

“I should report you,” Theta eventually sighs, just wanting everything to be over. He narrows his eyes at her, trying to buck her off to no avail.

“Then do it.”

She can’t. Her mind is screaming at her that she’s making a terrible mistake, but she gets off him, watching him roll out from under her and spring up onto his legs as soon as he’s free. She expects him to run off instantly, but he hesitates, lingering on her periphery. 

She decides on tossing him his wand which he fumbles to catch not having expected it.

“You told me you were on my side.” Theta looks up at him, hoping he will provide her with answers that will magically make everything make sense.

“I am on the right side,” he grumbles. “And in time, you’re going to have to pick one as well. Make sure it is the right one.”

* * *

Her friends find her after the match, glad that she's unharmed but angry that she disappeared. She spends the evening fending off their questions until she's eventually had enough, her head feeling like it's going to explode with all the new information that has resurfaced.

She doesn’t know how she ends up there. The prefects baths are infamous for their decadent luxury, making them a place Theta never really felt at home in, even after she gained access to them.

Still, she trudges up the stairs to the fifth floor, desperate for any means to drown out her thoughts. She doesn’t expect there to be anyone there, the clock having long since slipped past curfew, and none of the other prefects are as liable to break the rules as her. However, it takes her only one glance through the door to know she is not alone.

There are bubbles floating lazily through the air, the pool filled to the brim water, towers of soap foam threatening to spill over the edges. Corsair is lounging at the far end of the bath, closed eyes slipping open as Theta enters the room.

She forgot the quidditch captains have access too.

“Sorry. Didn’t think there would be anyone here. I can leave.”

She turns, shoulders slumping tiredly. Going back to sleep is not an option. She’s still furious with Koschei after all, so she’d rather not be in the same room as him at the moment. At least not while there’s a chance of both of them being conscious at the same time.

“I don’t mind.”

Theta sighs in relief, walking over to the edge of the pool. Corsair is watching her, grey eyes seemingly holding infinite depths in the low light. Theta had been worried she might’ve gotten a bit banged up after the firedrake attack, but it seems she got out of it mostly unscathed. She cocks her head, wringing water from her dark curls.

“You’re up late.”

“Lots on my mind. Couldn’t sleep.”

Corsair hums, not demanding any further explanations from her. Theta is grateful.

She shrugs off her robes, stripping down until she’s left with only her underwear. She settles on the edge of the pool, dipping her legs into the water. The room is completely silent as she closes her eyes, allowing herself to think of nothing apart from the soothing feeling of warm water washing up against her legs.

She doesn’t realise she’s crying before Corsair is standing up, moving to pull her into a wet hug. Theta sniffles, fighting it at first, but there is something comforting with having another human being holding her close while caressing her back and muttering soft words of comfort. 

Corsair plants a kiss to her hair. “You don’t need to tell me what’s wrong if you don’t want to, but if there’s anything I can do.”

Theta shakes her head, pulling away from Corsair so she can wipe at her eyes. She considers telling Corsair everything. About Koschei’s warning and him being behind the attacks but she doesn’t want to think about that right now. She needs a distraction, and while she feels a bit guilty for using her friend to forget, but she’s right there. Alive and reliable, looking almost godlike with her silhouette back-lit by the moonlight.

“Your previous offer, does it still stand? Could use a bit of fun right about now.” Theta’s voice feels weak and gravelly, her throat still sore from both screaming and crying. 

Corsair smiles sadly, brushing Theta’s hair out of her eyes. “I was only half joking with you earlier, but if you’re certain.” Her lips brush against Theta’s temple, then moves down to kiss at the corner of her mouth. She pauses, catching her gaze as if to ask for permission.

“Please?”

The feeling of Corsair’s lips against her own is unexpectedly gentle and comforting, her fingers tangling in masses of soft hair. She closes her eyes, revelling in the feeling of Corsair planting loving kisses down the side of her throat, deft fingers making quick work of removing her last articles of clothing.

She allows herself to be pulled into the water, her body falling into Corsair’s as they settle on the submerged bench that runs along the pools edges, Theta straddling Corsair’s lap.

Her entire body is buzzing with nervous energy. It isn’t as if she hasn’t fooled around with people before. However all those times were with someone she’d fallen for, her heart stupidly easy to catch. It feels both exciting and scary to indulge herself purely for the sake of the pleasure. 

This time there’s no awkward fumbling or sweet whispers exchanged. Just Corsair’s fingers leaving burning trails in their wake as they trace over her body. She hisses quietly as said fingers sink into her, Corsair capturing her sounds by slotting her lips over Theta’s own, kissing her deeply while working her slowly towards the edge. She cries out as she comes, Corsair hugging her tightly when she begins to quietly weep into her shoulder, tears dripping into the bath water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Doctor: *uses alias once during their run*  
> Me: Fuck it, that's what you're called now in this fic (why are the masters so much better at coming up with aliases, istg this is only a problem because the doctor refuses to go by anything other than john smith, step up your name game you old fool)
> 
> As always, thank you guys so much for reading!


	6. Endings

She awakes the next morning from what must have been her most dreamless sleep in months. Still, seeing her reflection in the windows she finds that her eyes are still puffy from crying, and there are bruises forming on her neck and shoulders which she hurriedly covers up with a high collared shirt that in turn goes underneath her robes. 

Somehow, Corsair must have managed to drag her unconscious form all the way from the prefect’s baths up the winding staircases leading to the seventh year dorm. As she surveys the room Theta finds that Corsair herself is sadly missing. She can spot Koschei hanging halfway out of his bed in his sleep on the other side of the room, gathering her things in a hurry so she can leave before he comes to.

She’s a bit early for breakfast, but contents herself with watching the students file into the dining hall. While some of them seem a bit shook from the previous days events, Theta is relieved to see that Koschei’s little stunt didn’t have close to the same effect as the one with the gorgons. 

Or maybe people are just getting used to being exposed to volley after volley of peril.

There’s still no sign of Corsair as the food starts to get served, but Theta tells herself she’s probably just doing some morning training with her team, as the majority of her teammates are also missing.

She’s about to dig into her omelette when Yaz slumps down next to her, pouring herself a glass of juice. To Theta’s surprise, her hair is already falling out of the bun she’s put it in, which is never a good sign. She usually doesn’t go out looking like that.

“Is everything alright?”

Yaz spits her juice back into her glass, gawking at her in disbelief.

“Did you not read the news?”

Theta shakes her head. Yaz turns over to her bag, rummaging around until she finds a copy of ‘Kasterborous daily’. The front page shows a wizard being forcefully restrained by a group of aurors, his face twisted into an angry scream. 

“That’s Lee,” Theta exclaims, grabbing the paper. “He’s a friend of my aunt Ruth. What are they taking him in for?”

“Violent actions against the ministry and breaches against the code of wizarding secrecy.”

Theta munches on a bun while rifling through the paper to find the article. “Why?”

“He was leading a group of muggle rights activist. The papers claims that he started attacking ministry agents while there were muggles present. The rest of his group seemed to have scattered when the aurors showed up.”

“But the muggle rights movement are pacifists,” Theta mutters, glancing up at Yaz who seems to have reached the same conclusion. 

“This is bad.”

Yaz nods solemnly. Theta finally finds the page with the article, a mugshot of Lee scowling up at her. There’s a small text box on the side of it explaining who he is and his previous crimes, most of Theta is sure must have been completely exaggerated. She’s met Lee; while he’s a hot head he’s not the dangerously unstable person described on the page.

Yaz sloshes her juice around in her glass absentmindedly, not even looking up as she accepts the paper back from Theta. Above them, owls has begun to find their way into the room so they can drop off the mail. Yaz accepts a different paper from one of them, tucking it into her bag to read later. From the look on her face, it doesn’t seem like it is delivering any better news. 

“According to my friends at home, the situation has been growing tense lately.” She sips her juice, breakfast still untouched. “Even Sheffield has had attacks on muggleborns and half-bloods. There’s only a matter of time before things get here.”

Koschei’s warnings echoes through Theta’s head. She shakes it, gripping Yaz’ shoulders with a reassuring smile.

“We won’t let that happen. The academy has been a safe haven for all sorts of wizards for the past few centuries, no reason that should end now.”

“Let’s hope not.” She turns back to her food, pushing it around the plate with her fork. 

“There’s a prefect meeting afterwards, but Narvin wanted you to know that you’re exempt.”

“Exempt?”

Yaz glances up at her with a serious face. “Rassilon has requested you.”

* * *

Rassilon’s office is located in one of the towers, several staircases and a couple of hidden doors making it a difficult room to locate. Theta ends up arguing with several paintings before they finally decides to take mercy on her and show her the way.

Somehow, even the act of locating the room ends up feeling like a test.

He’s seated behind a massive wooden desk, everything in put neat order on top of it. Behind him a lounge of firedrakes is rattling in their cage, their tails giving off the occasional spark. Theta briefly wonders if they’re the same ones Koschei let loose earlier.

“Why am I here?”

Rassilon frowns at her, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk, but doesn’t comment on her rudeness.

“Have a seat.”

Theta momentarily considers to remain standing out of spite, but she reminds herself she hasn’t got any reason to yet. For all she might know, Koschei was the one lying. Rassilon could easily be the good guy. Or so she hopes as he gives her another long look.

She pulls out the chair plopping down in it.

An enchanted pot followed by a set up cups jumps up on his desk, serving them both tea. Theta watches mesmerized as the pot runs of again on its stubby little legs, settling on a tray that’s tucked away between massive bookcases. Another quick look around alerts her to the presence of a myriad of various artefacts. They take up every space in large glass display cases that are built into arching walls. She gets the feeling she could have sat there for hours only looking if there weren’t more pressing matters at hand.

“Impressive, isn’t it?”

Theta nods, picking up her cup to take a sip of the tea. It is bitter without any sugar, but she forces it down anyway. Rassilon still haven’t touched his own.

“It is the greatest collection of magical artefacts this side of the world, only rivalled by that of your own brother’s, I believe.”

Theta grimaces. She can almost sense how smug he’d be were he to receive such high praise (completely undeserved in Theta’s opinion). She comes to the conclusion that the line between hoarding power and hoarding objects really must be thinner than she thought.

“I’m sure Brax would be ecstatic to hear that,” she eventually forces out. She’s pretty sure Braxiatel doesn’t have the ability to be ecstatic.

“Certainly,” Rassilon agrees. 

“Sir, I’m still confused as to why you called me here. Unless of course you only wanted to talk about my brother’s collection. Which would be a bit of a surprise really.”

“Alas. As you might imagine, running the academy has become increasingly difficult as of late. Not only has the school been under attack, but several students have started to see these uncertain times as an opportunity to well…” he pauses in a way that Theta is certain must be purely for the dramatic effect. “They’re taking liberties. Breaking rules, disrespecting teachers, spreading rumours that only generates fear. I’ve been looking to gather a small group of trusted students among the brightest witches and wizards at the school to aid me in keeping order.”

Theta frowns, already sensing red flags. “You’ve already got the prefects though. Why create a new group?”

Rassilon chuckles. “The prefects have their purpose, but the title is merely a step stone for the ambitious. Of course, some of them like yourself would be suited for the task, but you don’t give out _real_ power to just anyone.”

Theta averts her eyes, trying to quell the uneasy feeling that’s building inside her. She knows she’s being tested, the time to make the choice Koschei was offering her earlier hurtling towards her at terrifying speed. She’s yet to decide.

“And you want me?”

“Your mother has been a close friend of mine for years, as you might have known. She’s always been of great help in times of need. I was hoping you would show me the same courtesy.”

“You’ve met my brothers though, so you should know these things don’t really run in the family.”

Rassilon narrows his eyes at her. She can tell that she’s pushing back more than she should. Even though he’s got a reputation to uphold as a headmaster, she has no doubt he’ll be able to find ways to punish her indirectly should her behaviour displease him too much.

“Then I’m willing to give you a chance to prove that wrong.”

“Did you give the offer to Koschei too?”

For once, he seems taken aback, his hands unclasping from where they had been resting on his desk. “The Oakdown kid?”

“He’s got to be one of the brightest minds here, right? Ahead in his classes, model student, _pure blood family_.” She tries to gauge his reaction at the last part, but he remains indifferent.

“You’re the first one to be given the offer,” he states, voice daring her to challenge the statement. She’s almost certain he’s lying, but she lets it slide for now.

“I’ll have to think about it, if that’s alright?”

Rassilon gives her a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Of course. Let me know when you’re ready.”

* * *

She doesn’t decide on an answer. With the holidays fast approaching schoolwork begins to pile up for all of them, leaving Rassilon’s little request forgotten. She somehow convinces Ushas to trade patrols with her, effectively avoiding Koschei as much as she can. It is becoming increasingly harder with her anger towards him long since run dry, and her skeptical feelings towards Rassilon growing.

There are no new attacks from Koschei’s side, though unsettling news from the outside world still keeps coming; a journalist going missing, an increase in hate crimes, more conservative families beginning to speak out and the likes. The teachers try to keep their attention elsewhere, claiming panicking will do them no good and that whatever unrest that resides in their society will come to pass. Theta knows no one really believes that. 

She finds comfort in Corsair. When the stress becomes to much, or Yaz’ worried eyes becomes too unbearable to meet, the other girl is more than happy to whisk her away. They hide out in the astronomy tower, or the many secret passages the Marauder map will show them. At one point they go swimming in the lake, sharing kisses underwater where no one can see them, then lying on the banks to dry while listening to the silver leaves rustling in the wind.

Despite the rough start, Corsair’s prediction comes true, and they end the quidditch season as the leading team, the entire Prydon house celebrating loudly throughout the night after the last match. Theta finds herself cuddled up against Corsair in the common room as the festivities feel like they pass by in a blur before her, though that might be the ginger beer someone snuck in earlier.

It is easy to forget that the world is ending around her when she’s got something to distract herself with. Reality doesn’t really hit her before she ends up failing her last test of the year in defense against the dark arts, her great uncle trying his best to hide his disappointment when he hands her the results.

Borusa isn’t exactly thrilled either when he learns she’s been falling behind, though nothing he says will ever hurt as much as what those close to her think. She has half the mind to point out that Koschei is still regularly skipping his classes and getting away with it, but she decides the two really don’t need more reasons to dislike each other.

She’s still not sure where they stand anymore. Sometimes, he will throw her lingering glances whenever they’re in the same room together, but she tells herself they don’t really mean anything. They haven’t really spoken since the firedrake incident apart from working out the logistics of their patrols, and even those are not an item anymore. There are times she thinks he looks like he’s about to say something (hopefully an apology or an explanation of some sort, though what exactly she’s expecting him to apologise for is even beyond her) but he always catches himself in the last minute.

It isn’t before she finds half the school in the courtyard watching Borusa snap his wand in half that she finally finds any words for him. He is standing by the fountain where he found her weeks earlier, eyes stony as the broken wand pieces clatter to the ground. Borusa informs him that the carriage will be there for him in an hour. The crowd dissipates soon after, but he doesn’t move. 

There are rain clouds forming over head, wind whipping his hair into unfocused eyes that refuse to shed any tears. It is Theta that picks up the broken pieces.

“What’s going on?” Theta hands him the shrapnel, curling his fingers around them so he won’t lose them again.

“What do you think is happening?” His voice betrays the anger that he refused to show earlier. Now that she’s up close she can tell his lips are trembling.

Theta places a hand on his back, nudging him towards the castle. They’ll be drenched if they don’t get inside soon, the light drizzle already starting to permeate her clothes, making her hair damp and frizzy. 

She wonders how they found out about his role in the attacks. As far as she knows she’s the only one who knew, and her lips have been tight about the matter despite their fall out.

Koschei seems to catch onto what she is thinking, giving her a shrug. “It’s not what you think. Missy finally fled her vault this morning. They think I was involved and that I know where she is.”

“Do you?” 

He merely smiles mockingly at her, breezing past her up the stairs to the dorm. Theta has to run to keep up with his agitated pace, finding him already shoving his belongings into a trunk when she catches up.

She lingers on the periphery of his personal space, not wanting to get in the way of his aggressive packing. While she was dying to see him face some consequences for his actions, this is not how she wanted it all to go down. 

“This is ridiculous. The oath Missy took to serve her penance here, there’s no way someone our age could have broken it for her.”

Koschei snorts, continuing to shove various books and trinkets into his trunk.

“We’re related, we’ve both crossed Rassilon, we’re both threats to him the moment we leave this school. It is all about _convenience_. Rassilon’s been dying to get me under his control for years. This is him realising he’s failed and taking the first opportunity to present itself to get rid of me.”

He slams the lid of the trunk, shoulders relaxing in a sigh before turning to her.

"Still, he can't just do that." Even to herself, that argument feels weak. He stops in front of her eyes boring into her.

“Can't he? I’d be careful Theta. I’m not the only one he’s afraid of.”

* * *

She sends Rassilon a letter the next morning declining his offer. It may or may not have included a rudely phrased note questioning his ability to lead.

It allows her a single hour of petty bliss knowing that he’ll know that she isn’t scared of him and his thinly veiled threats.

A single hour that is up the moment Idris drops a red envelope in her lap during lunch. Corsair eyes her warily, but continues to eat her oatmeal. Both Ryan and Yaz’ eyes widen comically at it, subconsciously shifting away from her as she opens it.

The envelope flies from her hands, forming the shape of a mouth before beginning to speak with a stern, monotone voice. 

_“Theta Sigma Lungbarrow, the nerve you have to insult a superior not to mention the headmaster himself. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t heard it with my own ears straight from the source and yet here I am. To believe you would bring such disgrace to your own family, and for the sake of that blasted Oakdown family no less. This is not how we brought you up and if you even want to think of coming home this holiday you will beg on your knees that the headmaster forgives your insolent behaviour.”_

There is a pop as the letter self destructs in a tiny explosion, leaving charred red confetti falling into Theta’s food. She bows her head, trying to ignore all the looks she’s getting.

The thing about howlers is that they’re usually a message sent in rage, especially crafted to make the one on the receiving end feel the heat of their anger, and at the academy with the post being delivered during meals, the embarrassment of public shaming.

Somehow, the calmness of her mother’s voice made the whole ordeal even worse, even people sitting at other tables looking mildly unsettled by how composed the scolding was. 

“Theta, what did you do?” Corsair hisses, glancing around at the shocked student body.

“Nothing. Or nothing too bad. Possibly a little bit bad.” She rises, slinging her bag over her shoulder as she goes. She can hear Corsair shouting her name behind her, but she soldiers on. She doesn’t care what the others think. Koschei getting his wand snapped in front of everyone was unfair. While he definitely did do some questionable things, he was going places. If there is anyone at the academy who didn’t deserve to have their career cut short like that it was him.

For some reason, she can feel tears start to build in her eyes. She growls in frustration, finding the closest bathroom so she can lock herself into the toilet stall. She sits down on the lid, resting her forehead against her knees.

The door opens again seconds later, telling her that Corsair must have followed her. Her boots are visible in the gap between the stall door and the floor.

“What happened out there?”

There’s a thump as Corsair rests her back against the door. Theta can picture her perfect face riddled with confusion. She leans back against the toilet resolutely, knowing that if she opens the door she won’t be able to keep everything from spilling.

Corsair has that effect on her.

“Do you ever think Rassilon is wrong?”

She can hear the cogs turning in Corsair’s brain. While not a stickler to the rules, she isn’t a particularly idealistic type. Right and wrong aren’t matters she often concerns herself with. 

“Is this about Koschei?”

“Maybe.”

She hesitates. “I think the accusations against him are pretty serious. Missy did commit a lot of atrocities before agreeing to come here. If she’s back at old habits.” Corsair lets the implications hang.

“They’re accusations, nothing more.”

“Theta, listen to yourself. His actions might get people killed, why are you defending him?”

“I don’t know!”

The tears are falling now.

The door clicks as Corsair picks the lock, swinging the door open. Her eyes are filled with pity as she embraces Theta, planting a kiss on her head.

“I think we should end this thing. Us. Or at least take a break. You deserve to get some time to sort your feelings out.”

Theta sniffles, shoving Corsair away. “What?”

Corsair smiles sadly. “I’ve seen how you look at him you know. Like he’s some puzzle you can’t solve. Gallifrey knows you can’t help yourself when it comes to a good mystery.”

“You’re leaving me.” Theta can’t help the bitter tone that seeps into her voice. Corsair tucks Theta’s bangs behind her ear. 

“I’ll be here for you when you need it, you’re still my friend. However, I don’t think I deserve to be merely a distraction for you and neither do you. What we have here is good, but I’m not what you need right now.”

She scrunches her nose up, avoiding Corsair’s eyes. “That’s very cliché of you. Don’t like clichés.”

Corsair laughs, planting a chaste kiss on Theta’s lips before straightening up to leave. The smile on her lips feels sad even though she’s teasing her.

“We both know that’s a lie.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realised there are probably a lot of inconsistencies in whether I use british or american spelling, so I'm sorry for that. This is all unbetaed mostly written at 3.AM and I'm in no way a native English speaker.


	7. Holidays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slow update, real life has been busy! 
> 
> This chapter has a **content warning** for graphic descriptions of an injury. It will be towards the end and it should be obvious when it is about to happen.  
> Also, I finally bit the bullet and decided on which names to use for the various doctors that I know will be in this fic, the list is as follows:
> 
> War: Agnar (the name means warrior)  
> 9: Chris (For obvious reasons, and I think it still works with the character)  
> 10: John (10 will always be the one I associate with John smith)  
> 11: Elias (Apparently 11 used this name in a short story?)  
> 12: Basil (Used in the zygon inversion)

_ Dear Theta _

_ Sorry about the howler, we’ve spoken to mum but she refuses to budge on the matter. Still I hope all is well, and if you’re not willing to apologise we understand. Well, at least I do. Brax thinks the whole thing is amusing, especially since uncle Chris got into a big argument about it, and now him and mum aren’t talking.  _

_ Anyway, I’ve been staying with him for the time being because of work, though I’m sure mum will drag me home just to get me out of his influence the moment she sees an opening. No news from the ministry yet, though all aurors have been told to stay alert in this time of crisis. I tried to contact auntie Ruth about Lee, but she appears to have gone into hiding. We can only hope the situation won’t escalate further but Saxon and his team are definitely plotting something, I’m sure of it!  _

_ If you’re staying at school during the holidays, please be mindful of the sycorax, they can be quite nasty. I’ll be sure to send some satsumas your way.  _

_ Also, any words from Elias? He hasn’t sent any letters in a while, I was starting to worry. If you hear from him, send him my love, won’t you? _

_ Hope to see you again soon. _

_ John _

Idris is perched on the windowsill of the seventh year dorm, patiently waiting for Theta to get her thoughts down on paper. 

It is the last week of the term, which means people have already started to leave the academy for the holidays. There are a few stragglers left in her dorm, but she knows they’ll be gone in no time. 

Theta had spent the better part of the last month in detention, which is a rather weak attempt on Rassilon’s side to keep her in line. Still, it meant she had barely had the time to tell her friends goodbye. Corsair had offered her a hug and a tiny box wrapped in old news papers before jumping onto her broom and disappearing through the window. Yaz had her promise to phone if anything came up, only to realise Theta didn’t know what a phone was, which in turn prompted a horrified Yaz to acquire one for her with the help of professor Chesterton. 

She’s still going to need some time to figure it out, but with the holidays coming up she’ll have plenty. And then there is Ryan. Kind, brilliant Ryan whose grandparents wouldn’t hear a no when they asked her to stay with them during the holidays after finding out she’d been more or less kicked out of her home. 

She’s excited at the prospect, though she isn’t quite sure how to tell the rest of her family. Which leaves her to her current predicament. Idris’ eyes are tracking her as she paces around the room, trying to come up with the correct wording for her letter. 

John will probably be understanding, but then again he always is. She already told great uncle Basil, who simply seemed glad that he wouldn’t have to deal with another person on the school grounds, grumbling that Nardole was more than enough. However, she knows he’ll be amazing to the unlucky few who won’t have a home to go home to. She already saw him comforting Bill in the hallway the other day, so whatever laments about being stuck with Nardole are definitely for show.

Maybe she can tell John and no one else. Better that her mother thinks she’s miserable and alone than her finding out she’s been spending time in the muggle world. Then there’s also her Elias.

She’s been way too busy to have noticed the absence of letters from him, but now that John pointed it out she can't help but think that something is off. She makes a mental note to write to him as well after she’s done.

“You okay?”

Theta blinks, not having realised there were other people in the room. She sighs, setting down her quill and parchment on the windowsill, Idris cooing gently at her. 

Ryan is standing in the seventh year dorm doorway, one bag in each hand. He’s dressed for winter with a bright red scarf and a comfortable looking woollen hat atop his head. It takes Theta a moment to realise he’s ready to leave.

“Shit, I’m sorry. Not quite ready yet.”

Ryan shrugs, setting down his bags by her bed. He looks over to the messy pile of things Theta had yet to finish packing.

“Anything I can help you with?”

“Nah, I’ll be quick. Just gotta find out what to say in my letter to my family.”

“Didn’t think you were talking.” Ryan sits down on her bed, taking off his hat.

“Just my brother. My older one, but not the oldest. Big hair, very lanky?”

“I think I remember him. He played quidditch?”

“Yeah, but he wasn’t very good at it,” Theta grins. “Way too much limb. A bit of a downer for the Prydon team really, good thing Corsair came about later.”

She averts her gaze, already sensing Ryan’s pity oncoming. 

She’ll have John keep the letter to himself she decides, signing it off before handing it to Idris. The owl gives her a look which Theta blatantly ignores, then she’s gone.

“The train will leave in half an hour. I’ll head down to the station. Need to call me nan before we leave. You sure you’ll be alright?”

“Absolutely! I’ll meet you there. Won’t be a minute!”

Ryan doesn’t look entirely convinced, but he gets up to leave, the dorm feeling even emptier after he’s gone.

* * *

They make the train, though Theta has barely got her foot inside the door before the whole thing is moving sending her and her luggage flying to the floor. They eventually find a nice place by a window that allows them to watch the reds and oranges of the Gallifreyan landscape disappear until they’re met with the sombre greys of English cities.

The trip is rather uneventful, both of them dozing off several time until a monotone voice announces over the speakers that they’ll arrive in Sheffield in five minutes.

Ryan leads them through the train station, exiting through a pillar that is hidden behind a couple of disused vending machines. There is an elderly couple waiting for them on the muggle train platform who calls them over cheerfully.

The woman, Ryan’s grandmother, presents herself as Grace and proceeds to hug Theta the moment they’re introduced. It’s an unusual sensation, which makes her feel a bit at loss, but after contemplating it for a while, she decides that she likes it. And she likes Grace too. It isn’t difficult to see where Ryan gets his brilliance from.

Graham, Grace’s husband, is an equally kind soul who comes with lighthearted jokes and quips that has Theta warming up to him instantly. He tells her stories about his life as a bus driver and how his life has changed every since he found out about the wizarding world. It is fascinating in a way to hear someone speak with such wonder about things that feel almost mundane to Theta, and she wonders if they realise how perplexing and magical their world appears through her eyes. 

By the time they reach their little terrace house, they’ve all fallen into a comfortable dynamic. She spends the evening with Ryan, exploring the house and surrounding area and learning how to use her phone to text Yaz. They try to show her how to use an app that sends photos, but she insists on sending videos (despite Ryans assurances that it is completely normal for muggle photos to be statuary). Yaz has a good laugh about it, indulging her with a few videos herself.

When night eventually rolls around, she’s comfortably settled in a decently sized bed in one of the guest rooms, the background noise of the city lulling her into a peaceful sleep.

She’s surprised the next morning by a snowball hitting her window, another one hitting her square in the face when she peeks out to find the offender. Whatever sleep was still in her system is immediately gone, Yaz’ laughter ringing through the air from where she’s standing on the sidewalk together with Ryan, both of them dodging as Theta hurls the remains of the snowball back at them. 

It turns out Yaz only lives a short walk away from Ryan, which gives them the perfect opportunity to spend the day together, taking in the newly snow covered streets and the various market stalls set up in the peace gardens. 

Theta is awestruck by the many odd trinkets and foods that are available, pestering her friends to tell her everything down to the most mundane facts about anything that catches her fancy. 

She picks up a couple of souvenirs for her brothers, and some sweets for herself. Both Ryan and Yaz criticize her tastes, though it’s not her fault they don’t like the nordic liquorice she picked up from a stall filled with little troll figurines. (They had to drag her away before she launched into an explanation about what trolls really looked like. It isn’t every day you meet another troll enthusiast.)

By the time Yaz leaves them and they decide to return to Ryan’s house, Grace and Graham is in the middle of cooking up quite a feast. It isn’t too different from what Theta is used to at home, and she is glad to be of assistance, though she is quickly ushered out of the kitchen when it becomes apparent that she’s rather horrible at cooking.

She keeps herself occupied by setting the table, and when that is finished, she sits herself down in an armchair with Corsair’s gift, carefully peeling back the newspaper to reveal a small box for jewellery.

It contains a necklace in the shape of an hourglass, but instead of sand there is little stars swirling around inside it in galaxy like patterns, unaffected by the gravity that would have sand run from one part to the other. There is a little note on the side that reads “ _ For those with their head in the stars, untouched by time”. _

Theta smiles, slipping it around her neck. 

She also receives a home knit sweater and some biscuits after what must have been one of her best holiday dinners in years. She momentarily regrets that she didn’t bring any gifts for the O’Briens apart from a quidditch poster for Ryan, but they assure her it is fine, glad to dote on her.

As night falls there is snow falling lazily outside the window and a fire roaring in the fireplace. Grace is knitting something while Graham has launched into yet another bus driver story that has Ryan rolling his eyes.   
  


Theta thinks she must never have been so content in her entire life. She leans back into her chair, closing her eyes so she can concentrate on the almost imperceptible sound of the fire crackling, barely audible under the sound of laughter filling the room. The whole scene fills her with a warm feeling, almost like being wrapped in a particularly soft blanket. She is about to fall asleep when they hear it.

First a low crackle, like the air just got sucked into a void, followed by a loud crash somewhere outside the house. Theta shoots up into sitting position, head twisting around to locate the sound. Judging by the surprised looks on everyone’s faces, she didn’t just imagine it.

They stare at each other for a bated breath, before rising from their respective chairs and couches, Graham grabbing an umbrella on his way out as if that might protect him from potential attackers. 

Theta is the first one out the door, pulling her blanket tightly around her body to protect her from the snow that’s whipping harshly against every inch of exposed skin. The wind that had started to pick up at the beginning of the evening is now strong enough to be slightly deafening. She can barely make out the sound of Ryan and his grandparents following behind her.

I takes her a second to spot him. 

He must have hit the dumpster before tumbling onto the ground, which explains the crash they heard earlier. Theta might have missed him entirely if it hadn’t been for the bright red of his blood staining the snow around him.

There’s a gasp behind her, Grace moving past her to check Koschei’s unconscious form for vital signs. Theta edges closer, a lump forming in her throat. Grace is still assessing the injury, but she can already tell that it is pretty bad.

“Where did he come from. How did this happen?” she mutters to herself. It is probably a rhetorical question, but Theta already knows the answer.

“Splinching from an apparition gone wrong. Sometimes when inexperienced wizards teleport, they accidentally leave behind parts of themselves.”

Grace gives her a horrified look, but yells for Graham to help her carry him inside. Ryan eyes her worriedly as his grandparents try their best to move Koschei without harming him any further. He sidles up to her, grasping her hand for comfort. Theta feels a wave of gratitude, clutching his hand as if her life might depend on it.

“How can he be here?” Ryan whispers.

“He must have apparated. Though that shouldn’t have been possible if he didn’t know about this place beforehand.”

“Well, he can’t have been entirely successful,” Ryan states grimly. Theta bites the inside of her cheek in an attempt to calm herself. The snow is already covering up the bloody spot where his body had been. She bends down to pick up the wand he must have used, the shaft like everything else in its vicinity, is slick with blood. She doesn’t want to think about how he might have acquired it.

Grace and Graham manages to convert the kitchen table into a makeshift exam table in record time. As Theta feared, Koschei’s injury is quite extensive. His entire left side is a gaping wound missing either the skin or parts of the muscles from the shoulder down to his hip. His skin is already starting to pale, his blood soaking through the towels he’s lying on. It is a gruelling sight to say the least as Grace does her best to clean the wound and stop the bleeding while Ryan explains how they know him.

“We need to get him to a hospital. If he loses more blood he’ll be dead for sure.”

“No. We don’t know if there was anyone after him. He wouldn’t have gone for such a risky move if he wasn’t trying to escape from something.” Theta doesn’t mention that something or someone being after him would mean housing him puts them all at risk, but she can tell Grace has already thought of that. To her credit, that seems to be the least of her worries at the moment.

“Theta, he’s  _ dying. _ I might be a nurse, but this is far beyond my ability, especially with the equipment I have available.”

Theta grits her teeth. She knows Grace is right, but a muggle hospital holds too many uncertainties. For one, she doesn’t want to entrust him to a bunch of strangers. Then there is also the problem with explaining how he managed to injure himself in such a way in the first place, not to mention leaving him there would make him extremely vulnerable. She chances another glance at his unconscious form, having already made up her mind.

“Ryan, do you have your potions set here?”

“Yeah, it’s in my room. What do we need?”

“Dittany, plantain, anything with healing properties. Also, when we’ve got him stabilised we should get working on a blood replenishing potion. And call Yaz. She’s the best of us when it comes to potions.”

Ryan nods, disappearing up the stairs in the hallway.

“Is there anything I can do?” Grace is still bent over Koschei’s body, trying to stall the worst bleeding. 

“Just keep doing that. And even with the potion he might need some bandages, possibly stitches. Healing magic can be a bit tricky if you’re not trained in it.”

Yaz arrives minutes later by broomstick, her hair a mess and her clothes soaked from the weather. However, she spends little time lamenting the state of her looks, setting to work with a determination that Theta can’t help but admire. 

By the time midnight rolls around, they’ve got him mostly stabilised and set up in Theta’s guest room bed. Yaz decides to take the couch despite Graham’s offer to dig out an air mattress from their attic, and Theta insists she will be alright, feeling guilty for having kept the man up for so long. 

The house feels strangely quiet after everyone has gone to bed and Theta is left alone by Koschei’s bedside. Her entire body feels tired, but she knows she won’t be able to sleep yet, her mind buzzing with questions. 

She sits herself down in the windowsill, staring out on the streets below, the rhythmic sound of Koschei’s breath and the occasional car passing by the only things breaking the silence. Whatever he was running from hasn’t made an appearance yet, but she put down some wards around the house just in case. 

If something tries to break in, she’ll be ready to fight in mere seconds. A tiny part of her hopes that something will show. It is never a good thing for her to be left alone with her mind for too long, thought upon thought piling up until she feels dizzy. 

Tiredness eventually wins her over, making her try to find a comfortable position in the armchair that’s nestled into the corner opposite of the bed, but no matter what, sleep won’t catch her. 

She still feels guilty when she carefully climbs over Koschei’s body so she can lie down on the other side of the rather spacious bed, making sure to keep her limbs close to her body so she won’t jostle him in her sleep. She falls asleep to the sound of his breathing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to come up with the most disgusting candy I could think of, and honestly nordic salty liquorice is an abomination and I hate that it's a thing (though I'm sure 13 would have loved it being a dirt-eating-raccoon-person).
> 
> I'd love to get some feedback on this, so big thank you to everyone who leaves comments and kudos, they really make my day!  
> And if anyone wants to be friends or just yell about doctor who, you can find me at tumblr as Ilunefulltsinn.  
> Thanks for reading!


	8. Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aand we've reached the midway point of sorts! I might need some more time between updates since I've reached the end of what I've plotted out, but in the mean time, you can have one (1) chapter from the master's POV as a treat. Thank you guys so much for your support so far!

When he comes to, he is somewhere dark and stuffy where he has to fight to get enough oxygen out of every breath. His first thought is that everything hurts, and surely this world of pain must be him finally receiving the punishment for all the questionable choices he made along the line. Wizards don’t really believe in heaven and hell like the muggles do; having unravelled at least some of the questions regarding what happens after one's passing making the whole thing seem a bit redundant. Still, if he were to believe he knows there won’t be any pearly gates waiting for him.

It takes him a good few minutes of self-pitying to realise he is simply trapped underneath his blankets. Raising his arms to shrug them off has his entire left side protesting, but he manages to push them off enough to get his head into fresh air. 

Koschei doesn’t recognise the room, which makes him feel a twinge of panic, the memories from the previous day beginning to resurface. He tries to claw his way out of the blanket so he can get a better look at his aching body, only to be stopped by a body lying on the edge of it.

A scream is about to make its way out of his throat when he recognises the body as Theta, her messy hair obscuring most of her face. She’s cuddled up to his right side, mouth wide open as she breathes heavily in her sleep. There’s a wet spot of drool forming by his hip which should be disgusting, but he’s too relieved to have made it somewhere relatively safe to care.

Feeling a little calmer, he works himself free of the covers, wincing as he assesses the damage.

There’s a bandage wrapped around his chest and over his shoulder that stings when he tries to touch it. His skin is sore and raw where the wound peeks out from underneath the gauze near his hip, the whole area is sporting an irritated red colour. It hurts to move, so he tries his best to keep his movements slow and to a minimum. Someone must have lent him a pair of shorts, his body drowning in it despite the drawstrings having been tightened as much as possible without aggravating the wound further.

The door at the other side of the room creaks open, revealing the familiar face of Yasmin Khan. She’s carrying a white button down shirt, a phial with a murky green liquid in it and a glass of water.

“Good, you’re awake.” 

“Where am I?” His voice is raspy, though whether it is from sleep or from screaming he isn’t sure. He shifts his thoughts elsewhere before he can dwell on the past day’s events.

“You’re in Ryan’s grandparent’s house in Sheffield. Do you remember how you got here?”

Koschei squeeze his eyes shut, feeling an oncoming headache threatening to make its appearance. “I think so.”

Yaz pulls a chair up to the bed, setting the phial down on the nightstand and hands him the water. He gulps it down greedily, revelling in the cool, soothing feeling of it running down his throat.

“Care to explain then?”

She pulls out his wand from the pocket of her cardigan, his new one. The one he had stolen off the dead body of one of Rassilon’s men after Missy killed him in a fit off calm rage. It is slightly unreliable and not the best fit for him, but better than nothing.

Yaz moves it out of his reach when he tries to grab it from her, a frustrated whine leaving his lips.

“You shouldn’t have been able to get here, almost killed yourself in the attempt. Least you could do is fill us in. How did you do it, and is someone after you?”

Koschei suppresses the urge to growl at her, sinking down into the mattress petulantly. Out of all of Theta’s little friends, Yaz is definitely the brightest. He had almost been relieved when the gorgons got to her. Would have been if it hadn’t been for Theta’s grief stricken face. It had felt deliciously satisfying to hack the monster into pieces to destroy the leads later that night. 

Now he wonders if he wouldn’t have been better off with a more permanent method to keep her out of his way, perceptive brown eyes staring sternly at him in a way that gives no room for objections. Koschei sighs tiredly.

“They won’t know I’m here for at least a couple of days. Those dumb fools wouldn’t even consider looking in the muggle world before they’ve upended the entire wizarding world on its head. As for how I got here, I don’t know.”

“You don’t know,” Yaz deadpans, disbelief clear on her face. “Apparating is impossible without a clear destination in your mind, you must have thought of  _ something _ .”

Koschei glances over at Theta who is still sleeping soundly beside him, then back at Yaz. 

“I was in a bit of a hurry to get out of there, so sorry if my only thoughts were to get somewhere safe. It’s all a blur, and honestly I feel like absolute _shit_ so I would appreciate if you didn’t interrogate me at the moment.”

He feels a sliver of satisfaction at the guilty look Yaz gives him, suddenly seeming to remember why she came in in the first place. She reaches for the phial, uncorking it before pouring some of the liquid into his glass. 

“You should drink this twice a day for the next few days. It will help you regenerate your tissue and it might help on the pain.”

Koschei stares down into the glass, swirling the liquid around before taking a swig. As expected, his entire mouth fills with a foul taste that almost makes him spit it right out again. Still he swallows, scowling at Yaz who watches him with clear amusement.

“This tastes like shit,” he complains, sticking his tongue out in a weak attempt to get rid of the taste.

“Great, that means it’s working.”

“Didn’t peg you as the sadistic type.”

Yaz crosses her arms, leaning back in her chair.

“Let’s get something clear. We’ve all been made aware of your little schemes, and it’s beyond me why Theta still wants to help you, so you can thank her and her alone that you’re here and not lying comatose in some muggle hospital somewhere. I’m only doing this because I can’t bear to see her sad, and if that means saving your sorry ass that’s fine, but I don’t trust you and I sure as hell don't have to like you.”

Koschei shrugs, then immediately regrets the action as it sends a jolt of pain shooting down his side. “Fair enough.”

He almost expects her to launch into another tirade, she certainly looks like she has enough anger in her for it, but she simply sighs, tossing him the shirt as she get up from her chair.

“Can you stand? There’s food downstairs, I’m not bringing it up if I don’t have to.”

Koschei grimaces, but grits his teeth and forces himself to sit up, slinging his feet over the edge of the bed so they touch the floor. It hurts, but despite its putrid taste, Yaz’ potion must have started numbing his pains as promised.

It’s a bit humiliating when he can’t dress or get up himself and has to rely on Yaz to support him, but he takes comfort in the fact that she doesn’t seem all that pleased with the arrangement either. He glances back at Theta, wondering if he should wake her, but Yaz shakes her head.

“She had a rough night. Let her sleep.”

Yaz leads him out of the door and down a hallway until they reach a set of steep stairs, both of them hesitating at the top. Yaz strengthens her grip on him, giving him a sideways look.

“Right then, prepare yourself, this might hurt a bit.”

* * *

While both Yaz and Ryan doesn’t do much to hide their distrust of him, he is pleasantly surprised to find that both of Ryan’s grandparents are more than happy to have him around. They talk to him as if he’s just another friend of Ryan’s stopping by, and seem genuinely interested in his life and the wizarding world. Still, he keeps his replies short, not wanting to let go of any information that might upset Ryan and Yaz who hovers protectively at the edge of the kitchen.

If the elderly couple take any notice of the tense mood, they don’t show it. Graham whips together a tuna sandwich for him while Grace checks on his sutures. 

He isn’t particularly squeamish, but he can feel himself pale at the sight when the bandages are removed. Black stitches are trailing down his side like an uneven rail track, the skin almost white near the edges where his skin splits in two. Worst of all though, is the fact that the wound seem to be leaking a smelly goo that makes him feel nauseous. Fortunately Grace is quick to clean it and replace his bandages.

He still needs a few minutes before he is able to enjoy his sandwich, which is also the time it takes for Ryan and Yaz to realise he isn’t planning on causing any harm (and even if he wanted to, his injuries would prevent him from it). They reluctantly settles down by the kitchen table, joining in on the conversation that is mostly being kept alive by Graham.

It puzzles him how Graham seems to be able to talk about just anything without making the conversation seem dull or meaningless. His family was never one to sit down and talk together. Sure there was a lot of talking, but the blatant distrust between all of his family members (all which only cared about their own interests) usually meant most conversations were extremely superficial. The only one of them who had shown any genuine interest in him in the past few years had been Missy, and even she definitely had her own reasons for doing so.

They’re in the middle of a discussion about the benefits of floo powder compared to brooms when Theta finally makes an appearance, padding barefoot into the kitchen with _his_ blanket wrapped around herself. There are a couple of bloodstains on in, but he doesn’t comment on it. Wouldn’t have had the chance to as she freezes in the doorway, her eyes seeking out his somewhat hesitant.

“You’re awake. Wondered where you wandered off to.”

The comfortable atmosphere that had previously inhabited the kitchen is instantly shattered, swallowed up in tense bodies and unsaid words. Koschei can almost hear the cogs of her brain clicking away, wondering which questions to ask him now that he cannot avoid them. She breezes past him to fill a bowl with cereal which she proceeds to drown in milk until the liquid almost spills over the edges of the bowl. 

She sits down in an empty chair, glancing around as if confused by the fact that all conversation stopped the moment she walked in.

Grace is the one to break the silence, offering Theta a soft smile despite the fact that she’s spilling milk all over the kitchen table. “How are you feeling today?”

Theta answers with her mouth full, yet another thing about her that should be disgusting, but that Koschei finds he doesn’t really mind for mysterious reasons. “I’m good. Slept like a rock, you have very good beds.”

Koschei briefly wonders if the muggles think that’s a normal thing to compliment among wizards or if they simply don’t mind Theta’s ridiculous personality. Grace merely smiles in amusement.

Still, they can’t ignore the elephant in the room forever, the conversation dwindling into an occasional awkward remark every now and then. Theta keeps glancing up at him only to look away the moment their eyes meet which infuriates Koschei to no end. He is briefly reminded of her brother doing the same thing when he had something on his mind that he couldn’t quite bring himself to voice. The thought of Elias immediately makes his mood sour.

“If you have something to say, then say it.”

Theta starts, the milk sloshing around in her cereal bowl. She stirs the cereal around with her spoon, still avoiding his eyes but he can tell she is considering his offer to speak. The other occupants of the table watches the exchange silently, and Koschei wishes they would take a hint and go do something else. Surely there must be  _ something _ more interesting than what is currently going down.

“You shouldn’t be here, how?”

Somehow, that is the worst question she could have asked, and Koschei already feels tired of answering it after his previous interrogation round with Yaz. 

He smiles bitterly at her.  “Isn’t that the question we all want the answers to? I already told your guard dog here that I don’t know,” he grumbles, motioning towards Yaz who glares at him.

“Oi, be nice to Yaz. It’s her potions that fixed you up, you should thank her for it.”

“We’ve already established that that won’t be necessary,” he spits icily.

“He’s right,” Yaz agrees with equal coldness. Theta looks between them in a distressed manner that almost has Koschei regret his behaviour. Almost being the keyword. 

The meal ends quickly after that and Theta avoids him for the rest of the day in favour of taking her friends out to the market, which is fine by him. He spends most of it on the couch watching what muggles consider entertainment on the weird box in the living room. Graham tries to show him what he deems as “the-classic-must-watch” ones, and while not entirely horrible, Koschei ends up being more confused than anything. 

Not unlike in the wizarding world the holidays are spent doing little to nothing, so he tries to get some sleep in the hope of speeding up his healing process. If he’s right, he’s only got a couple of days before he’ll have to be on the move again, and if earlier was any indication, he won’t be able to retrieve his wand from Yaz before he’s at least not reliant on her help for walking.

He sleeps until dinner when Grace wakes him with a soft shake to his shoulder. They have leftovers from the previous day, which is absolutely delicious, though Koschei wouldn’t admit it to anyone. Still he eats way more than he expected, already feeling slightly better. That is until he has to take his second dose of Yaz’ potion.

To make things a bit better, Theta brings him a bag of candies from the market in what Koschei considers as some sort of peace offering. They taste a bit weird, but he decides he can learn to like it.

The day quickly bleeds into night, Theta being the one helping him back up the stairs to their room.

In hindsight, he should have known this moment would come. He had ample time to demand a different arrangement throughout the day, and he’s sure Theta’s thought about it too, yet when they both enter the little bedroom, neither of them seem very inclined to bring up the obvious.

Koschei gives in first, mostly because his left side is giving him hell and he will not stand up for longer than he has to. He slumps down on the edge of the bed, glancing warily up at Theta who is hovering outside the edge of his personal space, looking at loss for what to do.

He sighs, motioning for her to come over. “Are you going to sleep in the bed or would you rather kip on the floor? Either way, I’m going to sleep now.”

She pouts, but clambers over into the spot she occupied the previous night. Even though he’s lying on his back to avoid upsetting his side, he can tell that she’s fidgeting. He tries to just ignore it at first, but even with his eyes closed the nervous energy is radiating off her in droves, making it impossible for him to sleep.

“You’re loud,” he grumbles, wishing he could turn his back on her, but he can’t because of the stupid stitches and his ever present anger is beginning to boil inside him. 

“I didn’t say anything,” Theta quips, the sheets rustling as she settles in a new position.

“But you’re thinking it. Stop that.”

“Can’t help my thoughts.”

“I’m sure you can’t,” he snarks, closing his eyes harder. 

Elias couldn’t either. Except he would voice them loudly to whoever was willing (or not willing) to listen at any moment. At first glance, Koschei thought Theta was that way too, but the more he gets to know her the more certain he becomes that the incessant ramblings is mostly a facade. She guards her true feelings well, only letting them slip in moments of vulnerability. 

“Do you hate me?”

Koschei opens his eyes, turning his head towards her surprise. She’s lying on her side facing him, worrying her lower between her teeth . He wonders how he must appear to her for her to even entertain such a thought, when her sheer brilliance haunts him in ways he dares not describe. It is easy for his lips to form the next word, knowing it rings truer than most things in his life at the moment.

“No.”

Theta closes her eyes, breathing a sigh of relief. There is a moment where he thinks she’s gone to sleep, and he would have been okay with that, feeling exhausted himself, but she shifts onto her back and stares up into the roof.

“Rassilon tried to recruit me.”

Koschei hums. He isn’t surprised. Both Missy and Basil had seen it coming from miles away after his own decline of the offer. He glances over at her, his reluctant worry probably obvious in his eyes as she hurries to supply.

“I declined. Wrote him a rather curt letter that might have defended you. It didn’t go down very well.”

He lets out an incredulous laugh. Part of him is in awe that she would do that for him, but what wins out is the worry about the fact that she’s essentially painted a big bright target on herself. 

“I’m incredibly flattered, but also that was very stupid of you. You do realise he’ll be after you from now on?”

“Then I’ll do what I do best,” she grins. “Run.”

Koschei groans at her reply which is possibly the most Lungbarrow thing she could have said. He begins to question himself why he always seems to fall for that trademark stupidity. There must obviously be something awfully wrong with him. Then again, maybe it runs in the family. He’s seen the way Missy acts around Basil, or even his cousin Harold when he gets into arguments with the older Lungbarrow brothers. It would be just his luck to be cursed to pine after something as fleeting and unattainable as a distant star, always moving further away as the universe expands.

“Your thoughts are loud too.” Theta is staring at him again, green eyes almost resembling an infinitely deep grey well in the low light.

“Fools rarely differ.”

She makes a noise of protest. Her breath is tickling his neck now and he wonders if her heart is beating as fast as his is. It irks him that his body betrays him like that, when all he wants to do is get over his little crush before it has the chance to crush  _ him _ . 

“Your thoughts, tell me. You tell me to trust you, but I never know what you’re thinking or feeling.” She’s scrunching up her brow in a frown that does things to him (like making his traitorous heart beat faster). He considers snapping at her to get her to back off, because anger is easy and if he admits his feelings out loud they might become real, and he doesn’t know if he can deal with that. However her pleading eyes are hard to resist, and he prays that she won’t dig too deep, chipping away until there’s nothing left of his defences and he’s left naked exposed at her mercy.

“What do you want to know?” A dangerous question. 

She ponders for a moment. “Everything.”

“Greedy,” he mumbles. “Try again.” 

“Right now then. What’s going on in your mind?”

“I’m thinking about how you’re utterly ridiculous.”

She opens her mouth to protest but he silences her with a look. “Let me finish.”

He sighs, the lack of sleep leaving him feeling almost drunk. “I’m thinking about how you’re utterly ridiculous, and yet I can’t help but feel drawn to you, and I hate it. All my control, all my emotions get all weird when you’re around and I cannot  _ think _ .” 

“Is that such a bad thing?” Her voice is almost a whisper.

“You tell me.” They stare at each other, her eyes feeling like fire against him. She looks like she’s about to ask him another question but he pushes her away, wincing slightly at the sting in his side.

“Sleep, Theta.”

She huffs, but closes her eyes, her breath growing even in a matter of minutes. He watches her for a while, head too full to fall asleep immediately.


	9. Journey's beginning

She doesn’t know what wakes her. There is a vague recollection of screams haunting her dreams, but that’s nothing unusual. It takes her a couple of minutes of disoriented fumbling to realise she’s not at home but lying in the guest bed at Ryan’s house. A bed that apart from herself is completely empty. 

Her hands trail over the side of the bed that had previously been occupied by Koschei, only to find that it has had the time to go cold, nothing betraying the presence of another person despite the fact that it is still dark outside.

For a brief moment, she worries she might have dreamt it all, but the bloodstains in the sheets and the distinct scent that’s very him in a way she cannot explain tells her otherwise. She wonders if he went for a walk himself or if he had any help. She can’t imagine that he would wake Yaz rather than her if he needed to go anywhere, but then again he had perked up faster than expected, Yaz’ potions doing their little wonders.

She is about to exit the room to go looking for him when there’s a round of shouting outside, alerting her to the fact that the noises she first had dismissed as being groggy from sleep was actually coming from outside the window.

It takes only a peak through the closed blinds to realise the shouting is coming from Ryan who is beating something behind the rubbish bins with a bat. She doesn’t waste time lingering inside after that.

To her relief, Koschei is also outside, looking as healthy as someone who recently sustained a major splinching injury is capable of looking. Yaz is also there, leaning over whatever Ryan had been taken a go at with the bat, wand extended as if it might still jump up to attack her. Theta pads over, hugging herself against the chill of the night.

“What’s happening?”

Yaz’ head snaps towards her as if she hadn’t noticed her presence before now, eyes wide as she motions towards Koschei. “Why don’t you ask him?”

Koschei is leaning against the bins, trying his best to look unfazed, though Theta can see little hints of worry bleeding through his facade. Though he appears to have made it outside himself, Theta can tell by the way his hands are almost imperceptibly shivering and the tension in his stance that he isn’t faring as well as he’d like them to think.

Theta turns her attention back to the offending object, leaning down to get a better look at it despite Yaz’ protests. It looks almost like a normal bird albeit a little bit flat from the beating, but the blood red eyes and the shimmer of the wings gives it away.

“Is that a spycrow?” Theta picks it up by the wing, examining how if seen from the right angle it turns nearly invisible. It is a beautiful specimen, or it would have been if Ryan hadn’t beaten the shit out of it. 

“Atrocious thing, isn’t it,” Koschei mutters. There are fresh scrapes all over his face suggesting that Ryan wasn’t the only one doing the attacking. 

“How did you know it was here? They’re bred to be practically impossible to spot.”

“Impossible to spot as long as you don’t know they’re after you.” Koschei corrects. “They might be good spies, but they’re still birds. Set off one of my protective spells.”

“He means set off a goddamn alarm that nearly gave us all a heart attack then proceeded to try to get outside to get rid of it himself, despite barely being able to walk and not having a wand with him.” 

Yaz and Koschei scowl at each other. Luckily for them, Theta's attention is elsewhere.

“And the bat?” Theta prompts, glancing over at Ryan. He starts, looking away embarrassed.

“I panicked. Couldn’t find my wand in a hurry, and there was this screeching inside my head. Thought it was a banshee or something.”

“You would fight off a banshee with a bat?”

Ryan sputters. As comic as the whole situation seems in hindsight, it doesn’t remove the fact that whoever’s after Koschei is honing in on him. If the spycrow got back to its master, they would have been in some serious trouble. Theta frowns.

“Hold on. If you didn’t have your wand back, when did you have the time to put up a spell?”

Koschei stares at her, a deer caught in the headlights. She can tell he’s considering whether or not he’d be able to get away with lying to her.

“I might have nicked yours for a moment.” 

“What?” Theta’s hand flies to her pocket, only to find the wand safely in its place. Koschei has the sense to look guilty, and while she’s glad he did take it in this instance, it feels a bit like a violation of privacy. She shudders at the thought. “Don’t ever do that again.”

He raises his hands in defeat, trying to look nonchalant, but he’s visibly trembling. Theta doesn't think it’s from the cold.

“Let’s get you inside” she mutters, placing her hand around him so he can support himself on her.

She leads him into the living room, partly because she doesn’t want to drag him up the stairs but also because she has questions and it’s about time he gave her some answers.

Theta sits him down in one of the armchairs, then runs into the kitchen to get some band aids for his cuts. He frowns in protest as she plasters them across his face, the result ending up entirely ridiculous but also endearing. 

Theta herself is too restless to settle down, pacing in small circles in front of him.

“I think it’s time you told us why you’re on the run. I mean, aside from the obvious, Rassilon not liking you and you getting expelled. What are you not telling us?”

Koschei wrinkles his nose, looking like he’s about to protest. 

“We won’t be able to protect you if you don’t tell us what is happening.”

“I don’t need protecting.”

“Clearly, you don’t,” Theta snaps, coming to a halt in front of him. He stares up at her petulantly, but eventually gives in with an annoyed sigh.

“I lied to you earlier. I did help Missy escape. Didn’t think Rassilon catch on that quick, but I guess he had been suspicious of us for some time now. Not that it matters, Missy got caught on that night when I came here. She’s probably rotting away in Stormcage as we speak.”

Theta nods. While she isn’t surprised, there are still things that aren’t adding up. “Why? Why would she need to escape. She was doing well as far as I could tell. One doesn’t risk going to Stormcage for nothing.”

Koschei stills for a moment, hesitant as he continues.

“Saxon got a tip from an anonymous source, or so he claimed. He’s been licking Rassilon’s boots for quite some time now, so it could very well be from him. Anyway, his source claimed Rassilon had acquired the key required to activate The Moment.”

Theta feels her blood run cold, the grim look in Koschei’s eyes confirming that he’s had the same thoughts that is going through her head before. 

“What moment?” Yaz asks.

“Not a moment, The Moment,” Theta corrects. She bites her fingernails anxiously, glancing up at Koschei in the hopes that he will explain. 

“The Moment is a powerful weapon built by a wizard scientist called Roppen. It is said to have been able to wipe out entire species from existence in a single moment. Naturally, it was outlawed ages ago, and it is nearly forbidden to even speak of it.”

“What would he want with that?” Yaz is suddenly looking awfully pale against the harsh kitchen light. 

“Take a quick guess,” Koschei sneers. Yaz doesn’t quip back at him, nor do Theta berate him for his tone. There is a tense silence, none of them daring to voice the thoughts they’re all having. If Rassilon is truly behind the disappearances of the muggleborns, a weapon like The Moment would surely make his job a whole lot easier.

“Is that why Missy fled? She managed to steal the key?”

“She managed to steal what we  _ believe _ is the key. It is contained in a box that even Rassilon hadn’t managed to crack open yet. It requires three different keys to open and he had none of them in his possession. Not to mention it requires three different people to open the box.”

“Why three?” Ryan asks. “Seems like a lot, even for a death machine like that.”

Theta shrugs. “Three’s a strong number.”

Koschei hums in agreement, leaning back into his chair. He’s beginning to look a bit winded again, and Theta would suggest he return to bed, but there is still so much she needs him to tell her.

“Hold on. If Missy got caught, where is the box now?”

He waves dismissively in her direction. “Safe.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means telling you about it is one thing, but until I’m certain I can trust you, I won’t bring it out.” 

“After all we’ve done for you, you don’t trust us," Theta deadpans. She can't help but feel a bit hurt, even though Koschei has more than enough reasons to be distrustful. 

“I don’t think you understand. We nearly died trying to get a hold of that bloody thing. Until we’re at the target destination, it stays hidden.”

“And where would that be?”

He glances around, his distrust obvious in everything from his posture to the way his eyes flit nervously between them, then eventually settling on Theta. 

“When’s the last time you spoke to your mum?”

Theta crosses her arms tersely, glowering down at him. “What has that got to do with anything?”

“Just answer the question.”

She scowls, the anger she felt towards her mother resurfacing as she remembers the howler incident. “The day after you left. She sent me a howler for defending you against Rassilon. Haven’t heard a word from her since.”

Koschei nods, closing his eyes, seemingly satisfied with the answer. For a moment, Theta feels a slight need to take him by the shoulders and shake him until he stops playing games and just gives her the answers she wants. She pushes it down, reminding herself that he just went through a traumatic experience, and letting him see that he’s succeeding in infuriating her would probably be a win for him.

“Paternoster row.”

“What?”

“That’s where we were headed. There’s a safe house there owned by some of your grand uncle’s mates. They’re part of a group that has secretly worked to stop people like Rassilon for decades.”

“That’s in london innit?” Yaz asks. 

“10 points to Khan,” he drawls. “It’s a hidden location. Even I don’t know its exact whereabouts. Impossible to reach by apparition and it is not connected to the floo network.”

“The perfect hiding spot.” Theta glances over at Yaz and Ryan, confirming that they’ve reached the same conclusion as her.

“We’re coming with you.”

Koschei groans. “The hell you are.” 

“You’re in no way fit to travel alone.”

“You’re to be back at school in one week.”

“That’s plenty of time. Imagine all the stuff you could do in one week. You could make a whole list of things.”

“Oh I can imagine. Is getting yourself killed on that list?”

“No, but it clearly is on yours.”

Kochei makes a frustrated growl-like sound, sinking deeper into his chair. 

“Either way, you’ll need at least a couple more days to recover. We’ll set up some new protective spells in the meantime, some that won’t wake half the house mind. We’ll have to leave before they find out we’re beating up their spycrows though, don’t want them to send anything nastier.”

“Is there anyway to convince you to not come?” He huffs. 

“Nope,” Theta chirps happily. Her stay with the O’Brien’s had been very nice, but she can’t deny the buzz in her heart at the prospect of an adventure. It excites her more than it should given the dire circumstances.

“Come where?” Grace asks, eyeing them all sternly from the doorway.

* * *

As if it wasn’t bad enough to convince Koschei to let her come with him, neither Grace nor Graham are too keen on letting them go on their own. Especially Koschei, whom Grace has taken a shine to despite his lousy attitude. She's tending to his wounds as Graham is lecturing them.

“But you’re just  _ kids, _ ” Graham exclaims. “If you really need to go I can drive you.”

Theta shakes her head sadly. She’s more than grateful for the offer, but as far as she’s concerned, they won’t be the ones at risk if Ryan’s grandparents decides to come along. Not to mention that would probably only sour Koschei's already foul mood further.

“Both me and Koschei will be of legal age this year. These people detest muggles. We can’t risk you running into them. Us being here is already putting you in danger, and while we really can’t thank you enough for your kindness, this is a fight we need to face without you.”

“Well, he’s not fit to travel,” Grace points out nodding towards Koschei.

“He will be,” Theta shoots in before Koschei can come up with some unbecoming protest that will only make matters worse.

Grace looks doubtful, but she lets the matter go.

They wait for three more days, which turns up two new spycrows but fortunately nothing else. Still, Theta is itching to go by the time the fourth morning comes around.

On the second day Yaz takes her to a second hand clothes shop to find something for Koschei to wear that isn’t Ryan’s oversized hand-me-downs. They spend a good few hours in there, Theta getting distracted by every other item she comes across. She eventually finds a black hoodie and a deep purple windbreaker she thinks he might like, in addition to a set of purple and orange checkered trousers. She also picks up a blue sweater with rainbows on the front for herself, feeling strangely drawn to it.

Koschei’s health improves drastically each day, though he still is in a weakened state compared to his norm. He still has nightmares during the nights, though it’s unclear whether it is from recent events or something else altogether. Theta doesn’t dare to ask.

Sometimes they will lie awake, talking about anything but feelings and thoughts, the conversations of that first night ignored by both of them. Still, they linger by them, both of them skirting around it but neither of them brave enough to bring them up gain.

Grace removes Koschei’s stitches on that fourth morning, declaring him fit to go. Graham hands them a bag containing everything from a med-kit to rations. Theta feels a bit bad for accepting, knowing most of the contents will probably not be of too much help for them with a spell for just about anything at their fingertips. Still, she know Graham wanted to contribute in any way he could, so she thanks him profusely.

They enter into the wizarding world through Sheffield station, Yaz leading them to the main shopping street to pick up some supplies. 

“We should meet back here in an hour. Me and Ryan will head over to the travel agency to see if anyone will be willing to take us by portkey. If there’s anything you need when it comes to supplies now will be a good time,” Yaz informs them.

There are plenty of shops around, which is too bad since they don’t have too much time. They spend some time window shopping, Koschei looking almost longing as they pass the wand shop, but they both know he wouldn’t be able to get one legally after having been expelled. Yaz returned the stolen one to him when they left, but he doesn’t seem to like it too much.

Despite the nice weather and the plentiful crowds filling the street, there seems to be a tense atmosphere hanging over the place. People give them wary looks as they pass through the street, which Theta tries to combat with cheery smiles and greetings.

It doesn’t do her any favours so in the end, she decides she’s hungry, dragging Koschei over to a place that sells pies and jellied eels.

The shop smells heavenly when they enter, and although the food is horribly overpriced for a shop of its kind, Theta ends up buying a piece for both her and Koschei. They bring their food over to a street corner near where Yaz decided they should meet up.

As expected, the pie tastes deliciously, almost prompting a moan from Theta as she savours it. Having spent the entire morning packing and planning, she hadn’t really taken much time to eat, which is a huge regret. Grace’s cooking is amazing after all.

Koschei finishes his piece in a methodical fashion, not betraying whether he found it to his tastes or not. By the look on his face, it’s not something he is very used to eating.

Theta is nearly through her piece of pie when Yaz comes running out of the shop with Ryan hot on her heels, not a single portkey in sight, but there’s a newspaper clutched tightly in her hands. Theta is about to ask her what is wrong, but Yaz breezes past her, shoving Koschei into the alley they had been standing by, then forcefully pulling his hood up to cover his face.

He stumbles a bit, trying to bat her hands away but she shushes angrily at him, shoving the newspaper into his hands.

“We need to get out of here,” she hisses, casting worried glances around them. If anyone found Yaz assaulting Koschei in broad daylight weird, they don’t show it. Theta peers over Koschei’s shoulder as he lets out a silent curse at the paper in his hands. 

Taking up most of the front page, is Koschei’s wanted poster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was convinced birds spying on people were a thing in the hp universe only to realise I was thinking of the jabberjays in the hunger games, so the spycrows are basically those, but capable of turning invisible.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
> 
> As usual, I'm to be found as Ilunefulltsinn over at tumblr!


	10. New acquaintances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the delay! Real life has been busy now that school's started up again, and also I've been trying to start an art blog (I'll link it in the end notes if anyone is interested). I struggled a bit to write this as it is mostly filler, so I hope it doesn't drag out too much, but we're fast approaching the fun part. Hope you enjoy!

They make it back into the train station without problem, but none of them feel particularly relieved of that achievement. Theta wonders how many people recognised Koschei without confronting them. The paper had labelled him as extremely dangerous despite his age, so she suspects she has that to thank for people not approaching them, however ridiculous the notion. 

That also means someone may already have contacted the ministry and told them about their whereabouts. They don’t have any time to waste.

Ryan manages to get them tickets for an ordinary muggle train to London, which is all good but also incredibly boring. While Theta has spent a good deal of time on trains when travelling to and from the Academy, the trip feels like it lasts for ages. It doesn’t help that every time someone rises from their seat or walk past them, they all immediately tense up, worried that someone might be following them. 

Yaz eventually decides to go to sleep, leaning her head onto Theta’s shoulder. After a while Ryan leaves to find the café cart, promising to bring back something to snack on. It leaves her a bit anxious at first, but after a while she decides that worrying won’t help her much.

Theta tries to concentrate on other things. She tries staring out the window, but it grows boring quickly, so she settles for studying Koschei’s face from where he seated across from her. 

He’s reclined in his seat, eyes cast downwards in a sulk. His features are partially obscured by his hood and his hair falling into his eyes, but she leans onto the the folding table between them, careful not to wake Yaz, then peers up at him from where she’s rested her head on her arms. It takes a few minutes before he catches on.

“What?”

Theta bites her lip, not sure what to say. When she demanded to come along, she didn’t expect for there to be any awkward silences to fill. She’s usually good with those, able to go on for hours about everything and absolutely nothing at the same time. Yet, there is still much unsaid between them, and every word feels like stepping blind into a minefield. She doesn’t think neither of them are ready to have those conversations yet.

“What do you think we’ll find there?”

“At the safehouse?” Koschei asks. He looks almost perplexed, as if he hadn’t given it much thought up until now. His nose scrunches up as he thinks, a mannerism Theta herself has been accused of many times. She wonders if he always did that or if there’s a possibility that he picked it up from her. The latter would surely be amusing.

“Allies, I certainly hope. Or at least, someone who is not out to kill me.”

His tone is humorous, but she knows he’s being serious. 

“How do you plan to find it?”

He shrugs, hands playing with the strings of his hoodie. Theta always thought him to be some sort of high and mighty figure who carried himself with the same self-control and arrogance that Brax does. She never realised how animated he is at any given time, never quite able to sit still. 

He pops one of the hoodie strings into his mouth, worrying it absentmindedly between his teeth. “Missy said we’d know when we found it, though who knows what that meant.”

“Very cryptic of her,” Theta smiles, which in turn draws a smile from Koschei. He’s pretty when he smiles, she thinks, his edges growing soft for just a moment.

“Would you expect anything else? My best clue is that its location is in an area that was bombed to smithereens during the war, though that doesn’t narrow it down much. The building, like many others in its area, survived due to its magical capabilities, though of course, they had to cloak them to prevent them from revealing the existence of our kind. It’s been cloaked every since.”

“So they’ve had quite a few years to work on those cloaking spells then, great. I suppose that means they won’t be traceable through normal means then?”

“Nope, though I’m sure your pretty little mind will come up with something,” he smirks.

“You think I’m pretty?” Theta teases, expecting him to deny it or get pedantic about how her mind and her external looks are entirely unrelated, but he just stills. She usually isn’t easy to throw off balance, but the way he keeps silently staring at her, wordlessly picking her apart with his eyes is making her wanting to squirm.

“I guess I do,” he eventually concedes, looking almost surprised to have admitted it.

The moment is broken by Ryan returning, dumping several nearly identical packets onto the table.

“I got us crisps, though they only had salt and vinegar and shrimp flavour.” He glances between them, catching onto the mood. “Is everything alright?”

“I call shrimp,” Theta sighs.

* * *

The rest of the trip pass uneventfully and they arrive in London by dinnertime, though none of them feel particularly like eating. Instead, Yaz finds the right line for the underground to get them to the St. Paul area.

The St. Paul cathedral looms over them as they walk by, a monument to a god she feels no connection to, yet there is an indescribable powerful energy over the place.

They blend in perfectly with the many tourists milling about on site. Yaz even buys them one of those tacky tourist maps that contain more advertisements than actual map, which they brings over to a set of stairs to study. They learn the hard way that sitting down on the stone steps in winter will leave you with a cold bum and damp trousers.

Despite the uncomfortable meeting with the stairs, they manage to keep the mood light as they make they way towards the destination. Theta had been but a young girl the last time she set foot in the bustling capital. At the time, she’d been clinging to one of John’s arms while Elias clung to the other, their mother leading them down the narrow back alleys of the wizarding part of the city.

It isn’t much like she remembers it. For one thing, they’re currently in the extremely crowded muggle part. There are still holiday decorations out in the streets, and people hurry past them with bulging shopping bags, not wanting to miss out on the many post-holiday sales. 

They try to stick close to the buildings, careful not to let anyone see their faces. The chance that anyone will recognise them is small, wizards preferring to stick to their own hidden spaces, but she doesn’t rule it out. 

The muggle part of the city yields little clues to safe house's the whereabouts, modern shops taking up most of the space in the small backstreet. Even when scouring the connecting streets, they turn up nothing. It is an uncomfortable decision, but they all agree that their search will require them to pass over into the cloaked streets of the wizarding world.

Fortunately, Koschei has been to London more recently than her and is able to find them an entry point that leads into a disused backstreet. 

It is a tense walk from there and into the winding backstreets to paternoster row, Koschei leading the way silently through places that Theta’s mother would never let her traverse on her own. There are a few homeless people huddling up against the wall, giving them wary glances as they pass. Theta prays none of them reads the paper.

After a while, Theta can’t shake the feeling that they’re being watched, though she doesn’t dare voice that to the others. The last thing they need is feeding each other’s paranoia. Still, at one point Theta thinks she sees a bird hovering ominously above them, but it’s gone before she can tell whether it had been following them intentionally. 

They investigate several buildings, but none of them feels quite right, nor do they appear to have any magical energy outside the norm tied to them. Of course, many of them look the part, being leftovers from the old bookshops that once defined the district, but it doesn’t take more than one look for them to unanimously agree that they’re in the wrong places.

Koschei eventually comes to a halt outside a rundown building. By the looks of it, no one has been there for several years, which Theta finds odd for a building in central London, even in the hidden part. There’s also the uncomfortable feeling of dread that is radiating off the place in droves, making her want to turn on her heel and get as far away from there as possible.

“This can’t be right,” Ryan says, glancing up at Koschei who is trembling with emotions that Theta has yet to identify. He takes a deep breath, composing himself before pulling out his wand. They all watch in anticipation as the spell leaves his lips.

“ _ Revelio” _

The wind starts to pick up around them, evening slowly bleeding into night, but apart from that there’s no indication Koschei’s spell did anything at all. He stares at the building, arm still stretched out in spellcasting stance, as if he cannot quite believe there’s nothing there.

“Are you sure this is it?”

Theta’s voice feels small and weak now that it has to battle with the strong winds sweeping through the streets. As much as she’d love to find the safe house on paternoster row, there’s no way they can remain outside for much longer without freezing to death.

Koschei frowns, pointing his wand at the building, angrier this time, as if it only needs to be coerced. There’s a slight quiver in his voice as he yells the words this time.

“ _ Revelio! _ ”

His wand sparks, but that’s about it. The wind howls mockingly around them.

“We’ll try again tomorrow,” Theta offers, already feeling a bit chilly. She huddles into her coat, watching her breath turn visible in front of her. 

Koschei makes a distressed sound. “It  _ has  _ to be here. Don’t you feel it too?”

“I feel something, but it ain’t good,” Ryan mutters. Theta and Yaz nods in agreement. Koschei is pulling at his hair, walking over to try the door, but it doesn’t budge. It does however, leave a sizeable cloud of dust as he rattles it to no avail.

The people across the street stare at them, which prompts Theta to push Koschei away from the door.

“We’ll figure it out. Maybe it’s not here. There could be all manner of reasons why this place feels… off. Either way, we shouldn’t draw attention to ourselves.”

“You’re right.” Koschei scowls at the ground, but allows her to lead him out of sight from the other occupants of the street. Maybe she’s just growing tired, but the feeling of being watched grows stronger the longer they stay outside.

“We need to get out of here, preferably to somewhere we can spend the night.”

“I might have an idea,” Yaz grins.

* * *

They end up in a youth hostel, which they pay for using money from the care package Graham made them (Theta is forever grateful and scolds herself for nearly not accepting it). It turns out Yaz ran away from home around when her powers first started manifesting, and the hostel manager decided to take her in rather than leaving her out on the streets (then she was found later by one of the Academy scouts). 

Said manager isn’t there anymore, but Yaz claims she trusts the place with her life, which is good enough for Theta. 

The place is a bit on the rundown side, but there’s a certain degree of homey atmosphere to it all. The common area is packed full with bean bags and worn out sofas, and there is a tall bookshelf full of old VHS cassettes left behind by previous visitors, only playable on a single ancient TV that is surrounded by a sofa group. 

There are several tables with long benches, which reminds Theta about the dining hall back at the Academy. All of it is located in a small room behind the reception and has a small kitchen and a bar in an adjacent room.

Koschei insists that they don’t linger in the common area, dragging them off to the dorms despite Theta’s protests. She retaliates by getting the top bunk of the bunk beds, only to realise he didn’t want it in the first place.

While the feeling of being watched subsided somewhat the moment they were surrounded by walls, Theta struggles with falling asleep, her body too agitated to let her get any rest. Underneath her, Koschei is out cold the moment he hits the mattress, his breathing growing slow and heavy. At least he doesn’t snore.

She tries to listing to it in order to bore herself into sleep, but after having spent half an hour not sleeping, she decides she has had enough. 

Making sure to get down from her bunk as soundlessly as possible, she grabs a few quarters from their money stash and sneaks out of the door.

There is an old vending machine out in the corridor leading to the common area which sells all kinds of odd beverages Theta has never heard of. She settles for one with a funny picture on the box, bringing it over to one of the tables.

She probably shouldn’t be drinking anything containing sugar right now, but the need to occupy herself with something is strong, and the sweet taste is an easy distraction. She doesn’t know what she’ll do if they can’t find the safe house tomorrow, and while their journey so far has had few complications, she’s certain that the people looking for Koschei aren’t far behind.

“Couldn’t sleep?”

Theta jumps, only to realise it’s just Yaz. She’s wearing an oversized t-shirt and a pair of those soft shorts that people like to sleep in. Her hair is braided into two braids that she has pinned up into buns. 

“Not one for sleeping. Head too full of thoughts.”

Yaz sits down on the other side of the table, stealing a sip from her drink. She makes a face at the taste, but doesn’t comment on it. Aside from the two of them, the common area is nearly empty. There’s a couple cuddling on the sofa by the TV, but Theta isn’t entirely sure whether they’re watching a movie or sleeping. Then there’s two guys in their thirties sitting at the bar having a hushed conversation.

Yaz takes another sip of Theta’s drink despite not seeming to like it.

“Do you trust him? Koschei, I mean.”

Theta grimaces. “Don’t you?”

“He’s a wanted man. And well, it isn’t a secret that he has anger issues, not to mention his positively  _ charming _ personality. What if this is all a trap?”

“He didn’t want us to come with him in the first place,” Theta points out weakly. While she isn’t entirely sure where she stands on the subject of Koschei, she can’t help to feel like Yaz might be biased because of their troubled relation. Not that she can blame Yaz for being suspicious. She had been the same way herself only a few weeks back.

“His family is known for playing the long game. Saxon didn’t become minister of magic because he played fair.”

“Just because his family does that doesn’t mean he does too,” Theta snaps irritably. Yaz raises an eyebrow at her, downing the rest of her drink. 

She suddenly feels awfully tired. She’s sick of not being able to see the big picture and she’s even more sick of everything coming back to bloodlines and the associated duties and expectations. Maybe a part of her just wants Koschei to be good so she can have living proof that she doesn’t have to be who everyone expects her to as a result of her inheritance. 

Her declining mood is apparently noticed by Yaz who disposes of the soda can, then rises from her seat.

“I’ll head back now. You coming?”

Theta is about to nod, but barely has the time to duck out of the way as Yaz is sent flying into the brick wall behind her, her head hitting it with a sickening thwack. One of the guys from the bar is approaching them, a sneer on his features as he raises a wand at her.

It is then in a panicked moment she realises that she doesn’t have her wand on her.

Theta ducks out of the way of a stunning spell hurled her way, rolling out underneath the table then crawling over to where Yaz landed. She barely has the time to assure herself that the other girl is alive when the whole table levitates off the ground and smashes into a nearby wall, which prompts a scream from the couple on the sofa who flees the room soon after.

She doesn’t realise some of the debris must have grazed her before there is blood running down her forehead, forcing her to close her right eye as it leaves a hot trail down her face.

Theta grits her teeth, shielding Yaz’ body with her own, praying that whatever means the man decides to use to end her will be quick, but the blow never comes. Instead, the man makes a strangled noise, hands clutching at his throat trying to fight off an invisible enemy. He appears to be losing the battle against the invisible attacker, his body going limp.

There is a moment where she wants to do the same, her beat up body struggling to stay awake, but as the life slips away from their attacker, the air shimmers to reveal the form of a woman crushing the man’s throat in a bruising grip. He crumples to the ground with a thud, then the woman is hurrying over to her, which immediately causes Theta to instinctively recoil.

“Hey, it’s okay! You’re safe now. Are you hurt?”

The woman appears to be slightly older than herself, a mass of blonde curls framing her face. She’s dressed in practical clothes, and she seems to be in possession of an invisibility cloak ( a fact that would have impressed Theta on any other day).

“Who are you?” Theta whispers, hugging Yaz tighter, afraid that the woman might try to separate them. She kneels in front of them, offering Theta a hand and a cheeky smile.

“River Song, archaeologist. You must be Theta.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Upon realising paternoster row looks nothing like in the doctor who series in present day, I came up with the headcannon that the wizarding world exists in a different pocket of space overlaying the city that muggles live in, meaning you would have more or less the same streets but different architecture upon entering the wizarding world.
> 
> Thank you so much for sticking with this fic so far! 
> 
> If anyone is interested in my art blog you can find it [ here](https://arbitraryram.tumblr.com/). I'll post mostly doctor who at the moment but possibly some other stuff too!


	11. Old acquaintances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder of the human names I use for the doctors as even I struggle to remember sometimes:
> 
> Martin!doctor- Ruth  
> War!doctor- Agnar  
> 9- Chris  
> 10- John  
> 11- Elias  
> 12- Basil  
> 13- Theta

Theta is dumbstruck for a moment, but then it clicks. While they haven’t really met in person before, her brother would wax poetic about River quite a lot before he eventually disappeared. She should have recognised her the moment she stepped out from under the cape.

River’s expression falls a bit when Theta doesn’t take her hand, her green eyes full of worry. For a brief moment, all Theta can think is that she’s very pretty, and while she hates to her admit it , her brother does have excellent taste in people. She blinks, clumsily grasping for River’s hand to shake it.

“I’m fine. Nice to finally meet you.”

“Nice to finally meet you too. Now, where are the others.”

“Excuse me?” 

River rises from the floor, pulling out some sort of gadget with a screen that beeps every now and then. She studies it with a troubled expression, then shoves it into her satchel again.

“The boys who were travelling with you two. We don’t have much time, the man I just disposed of wasn’t working alone.”

The image of the two men sitting at the bar earlier comes to mind. She realises she never noticed when one of them left, which is all kinds of worrying. She’s about to point River in the direction of the dorms when there is a loud bang coming from down the corridor, River meeting her eyes with a raised eyebrow.

“Guess we figured out where his accomplice is. We need to flee, so see if you can wake her.”

Theta is about to protest, but the other woman is disappearing in the direction of the dorms before she can get a word out. She resigns herself to tending to Yaz instead, which is probably the most pressing matter at the moment.

There is blood coming from a cut at the back of her head, and judging from the fact that she hasn’t woken up yet, Theta can only assume she is concussed. Fortunately, she doesn’t seem to have any problem breathing and her heart is beating, so that’s a start.

She doesn’t know how long she waits for River to return, but it feels like an eternity. Especially since Yaz doesn’t show any sign of waking up anytime soon, despite Theta’s careful attempts to shake her awake.

When River eventually returns, she has both Koschei and Ryan in tow, in addition to all their belongings. Ryan helps her support Yaz’ unconscious form, which is not the most effective way to go about things, but Theta is worried about jostling her too much before knowing the extent of her injury, despite River edging them along impatiently.

The streets grow into a blur, but they eventually find themselves in front of the house Koschei had tried to get into earlier. It still exudes that same aura of wrongness that makes Theta feel sick to her stomach. Koschei lets out a small gasp as River walks up to the door, pulling out her wand.

“That’s not going to work, I already tried that,” he mutters, but River shushes him, drawing a shape in the air while whispering some incantation Theta cannot make out. The whole building seems to shudder, then the door begins to grow blurry, its surface almost shimmering.

“Not for you maybe. Now, come along, you’ll just have to walk through it.”

Koschei and River exchange a look. It feels like a silent challenge of sorts, but Theta isn’t certain as he throws one last glance at her, then he passes through the door. The space around them makes a sound reminiscent of air being sucked into a void, then he’s gone. 

“You next.” River nods towards Ryan. Her freezes up for a second, then reluctantly lets go of Yaz, taking a deep breath before stepping through.

Theta hesitates for a moment. She knows she should trust River, probably. There is something about her that makes her want to instantly trust her, but that doesn’t change the fact that they only just met, and her only reason to follow her is that her brother would have. Her brother, who is not anywhere in sight.

“It’s perfectly safe,” River claims. “Your friend needs medical assistance, we have a nurse who can take a look at her.”

“Is he there too?” Theta searches River’s face for any dishonesty, but all she finds is those inscrutable eyes that could contain entire oceans of secrets. 

“Do you want him to be?”

“Just, please tell me.”

River places a hand at her lower back, smiling down at her as if she’s about to indulge her in a secret. “I believe that information is what I’d call a spoiler.”

River pushes her. She’s sucked into the door.

* * *

Her journey through the door, which appear to be some kind of portal, feels a little like what she would imagine being dropped out of the highest tower of Arcadia would feel like. There is a feeling of something bordering on dread mixed with excitement building in her stomach, adrenaline coursing through her veins. Then suddenly, it’s over, and she’s standing in a hallway, holding onto Yaz with a nearly bruising grip. It takes her a moment to realise she’s still screaming.

River follows through only seconds later, her entrance much more graceful than Theta’s own, though she comforts herself with the fact that she hadn’t been ready. Ryan and Koschei runs over to her when they spot her, both of them looking a bit rattled by the experience.

There is also a third presence in the hallway, which River whispers something to before taking off. Theta swallows thickly. The person, which she assumes is a woman judging by the black Victorian style dress, is watching them silently from a few metres away. A veil pinned to a small hat is obscuring her face from view.

“Welcome to Paternoster row. I congratulate you on finding your way here.”

The voice feels eerily familiar, but Theta can’t remember where she might have heard it. The woman takes a step towards them, hand reaching up to remove the veil, making Theta’s little friend group hold a breath for an anticipated moment.

When the veil fals, it reveals a face so marred with pox scars that it makes the skin underneath look almost scaly. There is a slight green tint to it, though instead of making the woman look sick, it just adds to the lizard like texture of her face. It is only when she gets a look at her striking blue eyes that Theta recognises her.

“You’re the herbology teacher! Professor Flint!”

“Well you’re not wrong. To my friends, however, I’m known as Vastra.”

“Herbology professor,” Koschei mutters. “So that’s why you were always wearing veils. Most people just assumed you were from a different country or something.”

“Dragon pox,” Vastra hums. There’s a bitter undertone despite her amused smile. “Completely harmless once you’ve been cured despite it’s lasting effect on one's looks. Parents get ever so paranoid about it. However, that is not what we brought you here to discuss. We’ve been watching you for some time now.”

“And by ‘we’, she means me,” River adds, finally returning from an adjacent room with a small bald man at her heels. “This is Strax, he’s a nurse. He will take care of your friend.”

The man ambles over to where Theta is standing, frowning when she doesn't do anything. “Hurry. We don’t have time to waste, boy.”

Theta glances around confusedly, though he appears to have been addressing her. From the looks of it, Theta thought he might be some sort of half goblin or elf. He barely reaches up to her shoulder, but makes up for it with his bulky build. It doesn't feel quite right to just hand Yaz over to him, especially with his grouchy attitude, but she lets him pick her up in his arms so he can carry her off to somewhere more suited to deal with her injuries.

“Don’t mind him. He isn’t the brightest, but his heart is in the right place. Usually.”

Theta shakes her head. “You said you had been following us”.

“That’s right.”

“How? I knew something felt off, but I never saw you before the hostel. Also, if this was the place all along, why didn’t you let us in? If you had, Yaz wouldn’t have been hurt.”

River gives her a sympathetic look, which only makes her feel worse. The last thing she wants is her pity.

“You wouldn't have noticed, I'm an animagus." There is a sense of pride in her voice, though she doesn't elaborate further. "The moment you stepped into London, I sensed his presence.” She nods towards Koschei, who has been uncharacteristically silent the whole time. He merely raises an eyebrow, his form leaning lazily up against the wall with his arms crossed. 

“However, I could also instantly tell that there were ministry agents following you. If we had let you in when you first discovered the safe house, we would have compromised our position.”

“So you waited until one of us got hurt,” Koschei states. Theta can sense the anger in him which is always simmering underneath the surface beginning to make itself known.

“We waited until we knew you weren’t in league with the ministry,” River retorts. 

“Unlike you, I risked my life for this cause for several years now,” Koschei snaps, moving away from the wall until he is right in front of River. “You’re not in a position to speak about trust.”

“You were there when Missy was captured, we couldn’t be sure you weren’t involved.”

“Well, at least I was there at all.” Koschei lets the implication hang. 

“He does have a point,” I third voice chimes in. It makes Theta’s heart clench, her breath catching in her throat. He rounds the corner, all gangly limbs and goofy smiles that quickly die down when their eyes meet.   


There are many emotions she imagined she would have upon seeing her brother again, ranging from happiness to relief, but right now, all she can feel is anger. Koschei seems to be feeling something along the same vein himself, his body tense, eyes darting between River and Elias.

“Hello Koschei, Theta.”

“Hello Is that everything you have to say?” Theta crosses her arms. Koschei makes a face which perfectly portrays the same discontent Theta is currently feeling.

“Well,” he swallows. “I was going for a how have you been, but I’m guessing that is really not what you want to hear right now.”

“You were here all the time?” Theta presses. 

“Well not all the time, though some of it, yes.”

She thought he had been at the other side of the world, excavating whatever archaeologists like River excavated. Instead, he’d only been a small way away, and yet completely absent when she needed him. It is only now she realises how hard the past semester has been without him.

“Why?”

Beside her, Koschei draws a shaky breath, clearly trying to reign in his emotions. “Oh Theta, dear think, you’re brighter than this. I’m surprised you hadn’t figured yet.”

“What does he mean?”  She glances between them, feeling her distress growing. She wants to grab her brother by his lapels and scream at him until he gives her some answers, but there are too many eyes on her, all anticipating her next move.

“Isn’t it obvious? He never left because he suddenly fell in River and her trade. That is not how this story goes at all, is it?” Koschei nearly spits the words. 

“Theta,” Elias tries, his voice pleading. River looks slightly guilty, her eyes turned to the ground, though her face remains resolute.

“She deserve to know the truth,” Vastra shoots in, placing a hand on River’s shoulder. The younger woman flinches, but doesn’t raise her gaze. 

“What truth?”

“About everything,” Vastra replies. “Your brother has been an invaluable asset for our group for some time now.”

“Since when?” Theta feels like her head is swimming with all the information. Sure, she had noticed that Elias had become more secretive in recent times, not always disclosing where he was, but she had chalked that up to wanting privacy in his love life. First with Koschei, then later with River. It never occurred to her that he might have secretly been working for some hidden organisation hell bent on exposing Rassilon. 

In one way, she cannot be entirely surprised, most of it is adding up in her head. Still, she can’t deny that she feels hurt that her brother didn’t feel like he could tell her about it. She knows she would have. 

He swallows, but starts narrating. “Last year around this time actually. That’s when we first got wind of Rassilon showing interest towards locating The Moment. Missy had managed to figure out the date of an important meeting between Rassilon and a broker. Me and him,” he nods towards Koschei. “We were supposed to attend the function where the meeting was supposed to take place, then get the information to Vastra.”

“Except that didn’t happen,” Koschei continues. “Your brother decided I was too much of a liability in such a delicate mission. Gave me the wrong date, and went along with the plan all on his own.”

“You were in a volatile state of mind at the time,” Elias argues. 

“And you know very well why, but I guess you didn’t care for me enough to help me through it.”

“You know that’s not true.”

“Do I?”

Elias grimace, turning away from Koschei, then continues his story. “I didn’t know I was being watched. When Vastra sent me out to steal the map Rassilon had bought a few days later, I was ambushed by River.”

“Those bruises,” Theta remembers. “You told me you and Koschei had been fooling around. You just wanted to get me off your back!”

Koschei snickers while her brother sputters. “It worked, didn’t it?” he states sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. Theta fumes, but motions for him to finish his story. 

“River hails from a family that had struggled to bear children due to a curse. They were indebted to Rassilon for helping them lift it. She was raised to serve his family from a young age. When I went to retrieve the map she was helping him figure out the location of the key that would not only give him the opportunity to use the moment, but also figure out its whereabouts. She might have killed me if Missy hadn’t intervened.”

Theta scowls at the offending woman, who raises her hands in surrender. Part of her wants to tear into her for even daring to lay a finger on her brother. Only the fact that he is obviously smitten with her puts a damper on her anger.

“What happens next,” Theta grinds out between clenches teeth.

“River stayed with us,” Vastra intervenes. “She realised the error of her ways, with help from your brother, then she proceeded to help us gather information from Rassilon’s side.”

“You mean you kidnapped her and she tried to kill you all several times over,” Koschei spits, to which River shoots him a glare. 

“That’s where you were?” Theta asks. “Helping them turning  _ her _ to your side.” 

“Well, if you want to put it that way then some of the time, yes. By the time school started up again however, we were actually out searching for the keys to the box.”

Theta tries to clear her head, fighting the numb sensation that is beginning to overtake her. "Does John know? Does _Brax_?"

"No. Just great uncle Basil and auntie Ruth, but they were already involved before I came along."

She turns towards Koschei, mind still processing the whole thing. “And you knew about this the whole time?”

The smug look falls from Koschei’s face. He flinches at her accusation, his eyes pleading, but there is no denying he’s just another face who’s been in on keeping her out of the loop. She feels like screaming.

Vastra levels her with a pitying look. “Let’s not dwell on mistakes of the past. We managed to locate a key and Koschei managed to retrieve the box, isn’t that right?”

Koschei nods grimly.

“Very good. The others are waiting in the drawing room. I think it would be best if we were all here for this.”

* * *

The others turns out to be her grand uncle, Clara Oswald, Strax, another bald man with glasses and a pretty woman with brown hair wearing a blue waistcoat over a white shirt. She rises when they enter, pulling Vastra over to the side to whisper something to her. Theta doesn’t miss how her lips touch Vastra’s cheek in a chaste kiss.

Theta sticks close to Ryan, who fortunately seems as confused as she is by everything that has happened since they arrived at the row. She actively avoids making eye contact with her brother, River and Koschei, focusing on Vastra as she takes up the centre space of the room.

“I think we’re all excited to see the fruits of our last endeavour, especially since it cost us one of our own." An awkward silence falls over the group, Koschei grimacing at Vastra's choice of words. She turns towards him, gesturing for him to take her place.

"If you would?”

Koschei closes his eyes, then whispers an incantation, his hand reaching out into the space in front of him. At first, it looks like he’s grabbing at thin air, then his fingers close around something solid, slowly pulling it into existence, until he holds a small box in the palm of his hand.

It is barely bigger than a rat, golden vines twisting around its exterior that has three different keyholes. Elias rises from his seat, exchanging a glance with Koschei as if asking for permission before stepping up to him. He procures a key from one of his pockets, the same golden colour as the box, then inserts it into one of the keyholes. It clicks into place, but the box remains close.

“Two left to go,” he smiles. Koschei does not return it.

“Well that was anticlimactic,” Clara muses.

Vastra offers to show them their rooms after that, but Theta doesn’t feel much like sleeping. She isn’t ready to face any of her friends either, so she spends her time exploring the house. It is in many ways what a typical Victorian era house would look like, but the entire building is humming with magical energy, feeling almost alive beneath her fingers as she traces her hand along the wall.

It takes her about an hour to memorise the layout of the house. There is a small loft that is so stuffed with old furniture and trinkets that she can barely enter the room through a hatch in the ceiling of the second floor landing. Most of the rooms on the second floor appears to be bedrooms or similar spaces, so she avoids them for the most part. It is also where the infirmary is located, so she pops by to check on Yaz, who fortunately seems to be doing well under Strax’ care.

There is a beautiful conservatory on the first floor, filled with medical plants of both magical and ordinary origin. It houses a small table with a couple of wicker chairs that looks like they’d be lovely to take a nap in on a sunny day.

She eventually winds up in the entrance hall after having stolen a couple of sweet rolls from the kitchen, happily munching away as she approaches the front door. Like its cloaked counterpart on the streets, it is giving off a strong aura, though it feels less intimidating from this side.

“Quite a piece of work, isn’t it?”

She turns to find Clara approaching her, a small smile playing on her lips. Her petite frame and soft brown hair makes her look like the picture of innocence, but her eyes reveal the clever soul that hides behind the outer exterior. She comes to a halt beside Theta, reaching out to trace her fingers along the shapes of the door’s intricate wooden carvings, never actually touching the wood.

“How does it work,” Theta asks, mesmerised by how the magic seems to shift around them when they get too close, threatening with pulling them through to the other side.

“It’s quite complicated, even I don’t fully understand it,” Clara admits with a shrug. “This place is a bit like the wizarding plane overlaying the muggle world. We’re just in an even deeper layer. Or so they tell me,” she grins. There is a glint in her eye, and Theta decides she really likes her.

“Dimensional engineering,” Theta realises. “They made themselves a spatial pocket, except it has some sort of lock or filter to prevent unintended visitors. Oh, that’s clever.”

The door shudders as if it heard the compliment, Theta staring as its aura grows turbulent. Clara grabs her arm, pulling her backwards with her.

“Looks like someone’s coming through.”

Just a second after her words are uttered, the whole atmosphere seems to shift, then a person materialises inside.

Theta meets the newcomer’s eyes in delight, barely keeping herself from running up to give the woman a hug, but she merely gives them a quick look before brushing past.

“No time for happy reunions, we need to get the others,” Ruth’s steady voice informs them.

Theta and Clara falls into step with her as she takes the stairs two steps at a time.

“What is happening?” Theta demands, not used to see her aunt this rattled.

They stop at the top of the stairs, Ruth’s eyes growing grave behind her tinted glasses. “It’s the academy. Arcadia has fallen.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know 13 and Martin's doctor didn't really get on that well in the judoon episode, but I imagine that young Theta might have liked her or even looked up to her, so here's my take on that! (and also, she would have made the most badass aunt, who wouldn't want a relative like that?)
> 
> Anyway, as always thanks for reading! 
> 
> I'm available at tumblr as Ilunefulltsinn if anyone wants to have a chat!


	12. New plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the delay yet again! Between my exams coming up in a month and work taking up a lot of time, I haven't really had much to spare for writing. Sadly, updates might slow a bit from here on out but I will try to keep them coming at least approximately once a week. Sorry for the inconvenience!

“What do you mean fallen?”

Ruth is striding again, making Theta and Clara break into a light jog to keep up. She’s headed towards Vastra’s study, but instead of entering as Theta expects, she makes a sharp turn down a hallway Theta had not discovered earlier.

It is narrow, only leading to a single mosaic window high up on the wall at the end. However its purpose is evident as it contains several display cases showing off various artefacts on the right side. The left side is occupied by a row of old armours mounted on pedestals, each of them an unique set of craftsmanship.

Ruth stops by the last set of armour, a tunic with a set of metal plates sewn into the fabric. A mask with big black bug-like eyes sits atop of it rather than a helmet. A sword is clutched in the grip of the gloves of the mannequin, which Ruth pulls towards her, the whole building rumbling to reveal a door on the other side of the hallway.

The room they enter next is beautifully decorated. There is a huge tea table occupying the centre of the room, a tray of what appears to be steaming hot tea placed on its surface. There are paper lanterns suspended from the roof, but all of them remain unlit in favour for paper screens filtering in a soft yellow light, bathing the whole room in a dream like atmosphere.

Vastra is seated in one of the ridiculously high backed chairs, pouring over a set of documents together with the pretty woman from earlier. They both shoot up at Ruth’s arrival, not giving Theta and Clara a sliver of attention.

“You’re back,” the woman exclaims. “Tea?”

Ruth nods, sinking tiredly into an empty chair. Theta and Clara hover awkwardly for a few moments before Vastra motions for them to sit down.

“What are the news?” Vastra inquires, sipping her own tea as Ruth picks off her glasses to place them on the table in front of her. 

“Nothing good, I’m afraid.”

“You said Arcadia had fallen,” Theta shoots in. Ruth gives her a tired look, but turns to Vastra and the woman who are both sporting equally morose expressions on their faces.

“I’m sure you’ve heard of last night’s attacks.”

There is a series of nods around the table at the same time as Theta says “No.”

She’s endured quite a few exasperated looks from Ruth during her childhood, but however much the woman might claim that Theta is a nuisance, she’s also the only person who will stand up against Tecteun on her behalf, which automatically makes her a saint in Theta’s eyes. That doesn’t mean she won’t roll her eyes and grumble at every shred of attention Theta demands from her.

“A group of muggleborns killed an auror who was out on patrol in their neighbourhood.” Ruth allow Theta to let the words sink in before continuing. No wonder she’s tired, especially with everything that happened to Lee earlier.

“That’s awful,” Theta eventually swallows.

“You tell me. I’m surprised you didn’t catch wind of it. Your nose is usually finely attuned to these kind of things.”

“We were travelling.”

Vastra coughs. “What does this mean for us?”

“It means Rassilon has started a literal witch hunt for sympathisers with the activists. There are even rumours that half bloods and muggle borns have been warned to stay away from the academy for their own safety. I’d get our people out of that school this instant if I were you Vastra. They already drove Chesterton out for as little as teaching his subject. If anyone gets wind of the existence of our order.” 

Ruth pauses. Theta can feel the uneasiness running thick in the room.

“They cannot do that,” Vastra exclaims, her voice filled with outrage. “What about Saxon?”

“Siding with Rassilon. But you have to admit he was a wild card at best. Trusting one Oakdown was a gamble at best, but two was always too good to be true. Our best move for the time being is to simply retreat.”

“And the children?”

Ruth shakes her head. “I assume they’ll be in equal danger, though who knows how far Rassilon will be willing to go. The lunatic isn’t exactly quiet about his favouritism when it comes to fullbloods.”

“Then we cannot just leave,” Vastra insists. “There are more lives than just our own at stake.”

“Not all of us joined this cause out of noble reasons o great detective. We need to get our associates out of the school and out of the ministry. Gat has been breathing down my neck ever since they got Lee. They won’t be of any use there if their contact with me only sets them at risk.”

“We should at least give them a choice,” the woman to Vastra’s right suggests. Vastra glances over to her as if almost surprised she’s there at all. She drags a palm across her face, releasing a low sigh. 

“Jenny is right. We do not decide for anyone. If your contacts want out and find themselves in need of sanctuary, tell them the Paternoster row has room for them.”

Ruth nods. “And what will you do?”

“We’ll continue as planned. We still need to find the other keys, it’s our best bet for now. And of course, I will need to return to my position in order to keep suspicion off us.”

“Then who will search for the keys?” Clara asks. While she’s been silent during the entire conversation, Theta can feel something akin to an excited energy radiating off her. Her face unlike the others’ is looking determined.

“I’m afraid you’ll need to return to your classes as well miss Oswald. This is not up for debate.”

“Then send me.”

Theta feels a sudden urge to shrink under the attention of the whole room which is now directed at her. She straightens her back, meeting Vastra’s narrowed eyes with all the confidence she can muster. 

“Rassilon probably already suspects me because of my involvement with Koschei. I’d be kicked out of the academy the moment I set my foot there.”

“Your brother and River is already on the task.” There is a slight challenge to the tone of Vastra’s voice, her icy eyes boring through Theta, pulling her soul apart to examine the pieces before assembling it. Theta swallows.

“They’re two people, presumably a team. There are two remaining keys. If we could search for both at the same time, surely it would be more efficient.”

“Then who do you propose will be on your team then?”

There’s an amused smile playing on Vastra’s lips, knowing she’s caught Theta tripping up over her own words.

“I will.”

The sound of Koschei’s voice sends a chill down Theta’s spine. He’s standing in the doorway leading into the tea room, back-lit by the corridor behind him. He looks like he hasn’t been able to catch a wink of sleep either. Theta can almost forget she’s still mad at him when he enters the room, slumping down in the chair on Theta’s left without even sparing her a glance.

“I’m already kicked out of the academy, and Missy is no longer with us.” Theta glances over him as he utters his words as if Missy long since shuffled off the mortal coil rather than being incarcerated, though she supposes Stormcage is as close as you can get.

“The black sheep of your respective families. This could be interesting,” Ruth mutters.

“You realise this means you might impact your opportunities in the future?” Vastra asks gravely. “If we fail, you might be on the run for the rest of your lives. No job, no family. These tasks usually befall those with nothing to lose.”

“Well, you allowed my brother to go down that road. We’re the same him and I. This was always coming.”

Koschei remains silent beside her, but as he meets Vastra’s eyes a silent agreement of sorts seems to pass between them.

“Very well then. River will tell you what you need to know.”

* * *

Vastra sends them both away to find River after that, though Theta suspects she just wants them out of her hair to finish the meeting. Especially since she sends Clara away too under the guise of fetching Basil. 

She bids them goodbye for now, wishing them luck before taking off down the hallway. The silence that settles after she’s gone is deafening.

Koschei waits awkwardly for her to lead the way, not meeting her eyes, something Theta might have been grateful for half an hour ago. Now however, she feels tired of being angry with him. With her brother. When it comes to the people she cares about (and she is willing to admit to herself that she does care about Koschei on some level), she was never the best at holding grudges, always brushing her feelings away when they surface.

“Why did you do that?”

Her words have Koschei startling, glancing up at her through long lashes. Someone must have lent him a set of clothes because he’s back to wearing what Theta would consider old fashioned garments, this time a plaid waistcoat over a blue shirt with matching plaid pants.

“Do what?” 

Theta shakes her head, beginning the trek down the narrow hallway. It feels like the many sets of armour are inhabited by invisible beings, silently monitoring their every step.

“You offered to come with me. Now, listening in on conversations you weren’t invited to I can understand, but you volunteering like that. You’re nothing if not meticulous plans and elaborate schemes, what do you get out of this?”

Koschei halts, crossing his arms over his chest in annoyance.

“Vastra would never have let you go alone, I did you a favour. It isn’t as if she actually trusts you yet.”

“And she trusts you?” 

“Maybe not yet, but she will.” Koschei wrinkles his nose. Theta belatedly realises it might have been the wrong question to ask a person who's always been under scrutiny for merely being born into the wrong family. However, it is hard for her to let go of her defensive knee-jerk reactions.

“Right. Guess we’ll need to find River then.” She turns to start walking but is interrupted before she can even get out of the display case nightmare of a hallway.

“What about you? Do you trust me Theta?”

She turns, realising Koschei has not made any move to follow her. There’s a tense vulnerability to his posture, demanding an answer he fears he might not like. Her entire body is screaming for her to dodge the question, but the moment she meets Koschei’s eyes, she knows she’s lost that particular fight. 

She feels an urge to take a step closer, but it feels like there are fires raging around and between them, their relation a path that is equally likely to burn her as it is to lead somewhere useful. 

“What will you do if you don’t like the answer?” Her voice feels hoarse in her throat. She doesn’t miss the way Koschei’s tongue dart out to wet his lip, only for his teeth to tear anxiously into it. He approaches her cautiously, ever the brave one out of the two of them.

“Just answer me honestly. No more running. No more excuses.”

Theta sighs, leaning back against one of the glass cabinets. It appears to contain a set of skulls, though Theta can’t tell what creature it might have once belonged to.

“Part of me wants to trust you,” Theta hesitates, gauging Koschei’s reaction. He’s stare is sharp against her. “But like I said before, what do I really know about you? You never reveal your true intentions before I’ve exposed you against your will, which should be frustrating really, but it just makes me want to dig deeper.”

“If I were to express my intentions then, would you even allow me to?”

“I guess we’re in this as a team now. Like you said, no more running or excuses.”

Her mind doesn’t have the time to register him moving at all before he’s closed the distance between them, his lips tentatively touching hers in stark contrast to the way his body is nearly slamming into hers. His hands are resting on the sides of her face, caging her in in a way that allows no easy escape, but his grip is weak enough that she could wrestle herself free if she truly wanted to. She’s not sure she wants to.

She is about to press back against him when he pulls away, eyes wide with shock as if he cannot quite believe he went for it. He blinks rapidly, shaking his head.

“That’s my intention,” his voice is merely a whisper falling against her lips, his eyes downcast as he pulls away from her entirely. “Make of that what you will. We need to find River.”

Theta suppresses a shiver at the sound of his voice, now slightly gravelly. She doesn’t realise he’s clutched her hand in his before he’s pulling her with him, refusing to look back at her, but keeping her close nevertheless. Theta squeezes his hand, hoping to relay something, without knowing exactly what, her own emotions just as jumbled as Koschei’s own.

* * *

When she finally manages to catch some sleep, it feels like she’s woken up only minutes after. It makes her act a bit grouchy the following morning if the distressed looks Ryan keeps giving her is anything to go by.

Despite the recent news, both him and Yaz have decided they will be returning to Arcadia in a few days, which has Theta feeling all kinds of worried, no matter how much they ensure her they will be fine. Technically, she knows they will be, with both Clara, her great uncle and Vastra to look after them, not to mention whomever Vastra’s contacts within the school are, but leaving them when things are starting to change for the worse doesn’t sit well with her.

What’s even worse is the information River gave them the previous night. While giving them what she considered the least dangerous location out of the two remaining keys, the description of the place they headed to was more than spine chilling. Still, she is buzing wih restless energy, the Paternoster row already beginning to feel a bit claustrophobic.

It has taken them the better part of the morning to prepare for their respective quests. 

Koschei has yet to mention the incident in the hallway the previous day, but Theta does notice a change in the way he acts around her. His body language is slightly more relaxed, though he will get skittish if she accidentally brushes skin with him while they’re preparing for their trip, his eyes both expectant and fearful at the same time. 

They’re in the middle of preparing an extensive med kit with Vastra’s help when her brother pulls her aside. Theta has half the mind to protest, still not quite ready to forgive him for having left her, though she’s working on it. However, she cannot deny the sense of relief she feels when it is just the two of them in the kitchens, the sound of the other’s but an echo in the vast house.

“How is everything?” he eventually asks. Theta narrows her eyes, hopping up on one of the kitchen counters. It makes her feel a little bit more even with him; she never quite forgave him for outgrowing her.

“You mean since you left?”

Elias nods, guilt evident on his face. It brings Theta at least some satisfaction, though she tries not to revel in it too much. 

“It hasn’t been easy, though it’s not like I just laid down and quit existing or something.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to.” Theta finds that she’s missed his smile. It is surprisingly easy to fall into the comfortable dynamic they’ve built over the years. Unlike with John or Brax, whom she does miss from time to time, being reunited with Elias feels like putting on an old coat that you used to love but stopped using for unknown reasons. It’s an indescribable sense of home, which she finds in few other people.

“How about you? I expect your adventures were more interesting than my own. Even landed yourself a girlfriend, who would have thought.”

To Theta’s delight Elias blushes an amazing shade or red. He had always been so easy to tease, she’s glad to find he hasn’t really changed much in that aspect.

“Not an amazing feat from what I’ve heard I’m not the only one, though I do admit I’m surprised I’m the one of us who managed to hold on to one the longest.” He raises an eyebrow at her. It takes her a moment to realise he’s probably referring to Corsair.

“Who told you?” Theta mutters. 

“I believe his name was Ryan. Brilliant people your friends, he even invited me to play wizarding chess.”

“Of course he did. You know he actually thought you were decent at quidditch, if I didn’t think it nigh impossible I’d even say you’d got yourself bit of a fan. I do suspect you have John to thank for that though, even you would look like a professional next to him.”

“Oi, the Prydon chapter almost won last year, and I’m definitely miles better than John.”

“Keep telling yourself that.”

They break into a laugh, Elias pulling her into a bone crushing hug that is almost enough to draw tears from Theta’s eyes. Unlike her brother she’s never been much of a hugger, but she admits she can appreciate it sometimes.

“There’s something I need to talk to you about.”

Theta can tell he’s serious despite not being able to see his face. She pushes him away gently, already feeling anxious about what he’s about to say. Her twin might not be the most serious of personalities, but whenever he manages to pull himself out of his childlike persona, Theta knows he really means it.

“Go on then.”

“Koschei. I need you to be cautious around him.”

Theta snorts. “Please. I know your relationship didn’t end on the best terms but I think I can handle myself around him. And did you ever stop to consider you seriously hurt him? I’m the one who was left behind to deal with your messes, I’ve seen things too.”

“You don’t know him like I do, Theta. He might claim what we had ended because of River, but things had already started to crack long before that. He’s unstable at best, you’d best be prepared for when he breaks.”

“I can’t believe you,” Theta huffs. Her mind jumps to their moment the previous night. Of course Elias would spring something like this on her just when she had begun to untangle her feelings for Koschei.

“Just listen to me. I’m not saying you abandon your task or anything. Just be careful. He’s shouldering a lot because of his past, things he’ll need to tell you himself, but if it comes to it, it is not a burden you’re in any way required to bear for him, do you hear me?”

Theta sighs. “I appreciate your warning, brother. Just don’t assume I will fail him because you did. We might have grown up together, but that doesn’t mean the treatment we received was ever equal.”

“I know.” Despite her anger, Theta allows herself to be pulled into another hug. “I know this better than anyone. Which is why I also know you don’t deserve this. You’ve already suffered enough.”


	13. Water spirits

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since Gallifrey being mistaken as a place in Ireland is a running gag in the dwu I have decided there is no Ireland in this fic as Gallifrey will be taking its place. Also I wrote this while I should be sleeping in order to get up for work, so I did not take the time to proof read it to myself, so apologies for what I assume is probably quite a few mistakes.

Theta frowns down at the map in her hands, suppressing a shiver as she glances up at the entrance to the forest in front of them. They’re standing in a field at the outskirts of a village (they’re supposed to be in Scotland, though for all Theta knows they might have ended up just about anywhere in the UK) . Vastra had arranged a portkey for them, which means their journey so far has only taken them half a day.

Looking up at the forest, Theta almost wishes it had taken longer. The trees are towering above them, branches like crooked hands reaching down towards them, beckoning them inwards in an untrustworthy manner. Every so often the wind rattles the branches, making it seem like they’re whispering in hoarse voices, which all things considered doesn’t seem to far fetched when coming to think of all the properties of magical plants. It is impossible to see more than a few metres into the woods, the vegetation too thick and the foliage blocking out most of the light. That is somehow the least unsettling thing about the place.

Beside her, Koschei is fidgeting with the straps of his backpack, eyes glued to the treeline in front of them. He’s been jumpy all morning and no amount of calming words from Theta has managed to soothe him; she suspects there isn’t a thing in the entire universe that could properly cure the restlessness of his soul. That doesn’t mean she won’t try, but showing Koschei affection is a bit like pouring water into a deep well. He’ll gladly accept it though nothing can ever seem to actually fill him up.

Theta goes back to studying the map. She’s done so several times over to ensure they’re in the right place (which they undoubtedly are.) The only thing that remains is entering the forest, locating the right place and retrieving the key. Neither of them is feeling very inclined to follow through with step one of the plan.

“Something about this place is just  _ wrong _ ,” Koschei eventually mutters. Theta nods in agreement, having already reached that conclusion quite some time ago. She swallows down the lump that has been forming in her throat. When they first approached, she dismissed the feeling of wrongness as a simple defense mechanism, not unlike the one on Vastra’s house on Paternoster row. However, the longer she spends staring at the cluster of trees, the more certain she becomes that whatever evil this forest holds is very much real.

“We should be quick,” she decides. “According to the map, if we enter just left of the pond over there, the path to our goal will be almost a straight line. River said we’re probably looking for some kind of burrow or cave of sorts. It should be evident when we see it. The forest can be deceptive though, it might try to play tricks on our minds, so we should stick together.”

“Are you talking just to assure yourself now?”

“Are you feeling assured?”

“No.” Koschei gives her a deadpan look, though he doesn’t quite manage to hide the fear in his eyes. He’s shifting his weight nervously again, though whether it is from her presence or from the task ahead, she isn’t quite sure. Probably a bit of both. Theta sighs, slipping her hand into his, at which he tenses up for a second before relaxing.

“This way we won’t stray apart,” she explains, putting on a smile that she hopes is more reassuring than her speech. “It’s just a forest. What’s the worst thing that could happen? The trees try to attack us? Or maybe we piss off some centaurs and have to run for our lives? I’ve done worse.”

“Centaurs are the least of my concerns right now,” Koschei quips, but he squeezes her hand tightly in his own as they take the first step into the darkness.

Predictably, the forest is just as dark on the inside as it looked on the outside, making it difficult to see more than a few feet ahead. Even when they both draw their wands to use the lumos spell, the trees are simply clustered together too tight for them to make out anything. The light at the tips of their wands cast a haunting glow that bounces off the tree trunks, adding to the eerie atmosphere of the place. 

Sometimes, Theta swears she can see creatures moving out of the corner of her eye, but it is always gone before she can establish whether what she saw was really there or not. Koschei appears to be equally wary, eyes rapidly darting from one spot to another, his entire body tense as a bowstring waiting for the arrow to fly. Theta fears that if something decides to attack them, they won’t stand a chance no matter how alert they are.

As they walk deeper into the woods, the air becomes more humid, making it harder to breathe. Out of nowhere a thick layer of fog has started to form on the ground, causing them both to stumble every now and then on roots they can no longer see. There is also the sounds, confirming that the creatures Theta hoped she was only imagining is definitely there. She squeezes Koschei’s hand for comfort even though she finds little relief in him returning the gesture.

After having stumbled through the woods for what feels like hours, though Theta suspects they might only have been there for a few minutes, they come upon what appears to be the goal. They almost walk right past it, only the path tapering off, turning into unruly undergrowth indicating that they’ve reached their destination.

They decide to split up for a moment to search the area for any clues as to where the entrance to the keys’ hiding place might be hidden. Her palm feels sweaty when Koschei lets go of her hand. She isn’t sure whether it is from fear or something else altogether.

It is Koschei who eventually finds it, “it” being a mossy rock with a message carved into in. It might have been helpful if Theta could read the language it is written in.

“What do you reckon it says?” she whispers. It is the loudest she dares to speak at the moment, anything else feeling as if it might bring down the creatures of the woods upon them. Koschei frowns, tracing his fingers over the carvings. They’re old, the moss staining his fingertips.

“Looks like old high gallifreyan.”

“But we’re not in Gallifrey.”

“We’re not far from it either.”

“Can you read it?”

Koschei shakes his head. Theta tries not to be too disappointed. The language is hardly taught anymore, only the ones with a special interest bothering to take the subject, and even those who do rarely becomes anything close to fluent. 

“I think it is a warning,” Koschei states, his face suddenly the impeccable mask of collected calmness he tends to wear when he doesn’t want people to know what he’s thinking. It is a facade Theta only recently learned to spot.

“What makes you say that?”

Koschei closes his eyes, fingers still tracing the stone. “There appears to be a message of sorts lingering to it, though it is too old to make out properly. I think it still feels like a warning.”

“I don’t sense anything,” Theta sulks. She tries to touch the stone as well, but it yields no result. Koschei gives her a smug smile, tapping his wand on the stone, the ground rumbling under them as a set of stairs leading down under the ground reveals itself.

“You’d have to have at least a shred of talent in legilimency in order to. Ladies first?”

Theta rolls her eyes, shoving Koschei in front of her before following down the mossy steps. She gives her surroundings a final glance, suddenly feeling like the eerie forest isn’t the worst place she could be, then the darkness swallows them both.

* * *

The stairs leads them down into a narrow tunnel dug out from the ground. The damp dirt walls smells earthy with a hint of mold. The air has long since gone stale, only their trek through the tunnel stirring some movement in it. Theta is glad she isn’t particularly claustrophobic.

The tunnel eventually leads out into what appears to be some sort of cavern, the ceiling way too high to be able to fit into the space beneath the forest floor; in some points it is so high above them Theta cannot spot where it ends. 

“ _ Lumos maxima.”  _

Theta’s vision flashes white before her as an orb of light is hurled out from Koschei’s wand, illuminating the space before them.In front of them, a vast underground lake stretches on for as far as the eye can see, only a small island in the distance giving any indication that there might be more to the place than just endless water and rock.

Theta pads over to the edge of the water, the surface so still there’s not even a ripple in her reflection. It allows her to see how the ground slowly slopes downwards until the depths become too great to make out anything. If she was not a complete fool, she could almost have believed the water to be a solid surface on which she could walk upon. She bends down, reaching out a hand towards the surface, only to be dragged away by a frantic Koschei.

“Don’t touch it. We don’t know what might happen. For all we know it is acidic, not to mention there might be creatures.”

Theta rips her hand out of his grasp, huffing. “If we can’t touch it, then how do you reckon we get across? The key must be located on that island. There’s nowhere else.”

“In that case, we should look for a safe way across. Preferably one that doesn’t involve us getting in contact with the water, if that’s what it even is.”

Koschei crosses his arms over his chest, giving her a stubborn look which tells her he won’t budge on his stance unless properly convinced. While he probably isn’t wrong in fearing what might happen if they try to cross, there’s nothing suggesting that the surface in front of them is anything but plain old water. Before he can protest Theta picks up a rock, flinging it into the lake. It causes a series of ripples to break the surface,the stone sinking until she can’t see it anymore. 

“See, it’s probably just water. It’s not that far, we could easily swim across.”

Koschei looks like he’s about to protest, but then the lake starts to bubble, a mountain of foam beginning to gather around the spot where Theta’s rock hit. Koschei pulls her backwards towards the tunnel, his wand outstretched.

“What did you do?” he hisses, eyes manic as they watch the foam mountain grow bigger and bigger until something breaches the surface.

At first she can’t make out what it is, Koschei shielding her with his body making it hard to see anything past his shoulder, not to mention the cave still being relatively dark despite the light orb still hovering above the lake.

It is only when he relaxes a little, allowing for Theta to push past him that she manages to catch a glimpse of the creature.

Her first thought is that it is absolutely stunning.

On the shore, a magnificent white horse is regarding them with empty milky white eyes. It is roughly the size of a unicorn, its mane is long enough to trail across the ground. It emits a soft white light from its fur, and while definitely solid, there’s a glossy quality to its form as if it was made from the same water Theta was studying earlier.

“Look at you,” Theta marvels at the creature. She approaches it carefully, almost afraid it might run away if she makes any sudden movements. Its muzzle feels surprisingly warm as she touches her palms to its head, patting it gently. 

Behind her, Koschei looks a bit more skeptic. He keeps his distance, scowling at the horse.

“This must be it. Our way across!” Theta exclaims, turning to Koschei who doesn’t look at all convinced.

“You want us to ride across the lake on a magic horse that conveniently appeared out of nowhere,” he deadpans. At least he’s lowered his wand Theta sighs inwardly.

“Look, it’s better than swimming isn’t it? And look, it’s friendly!”

The horse makes an exhaling sound, warm air blowing out of its nostrils across Theta’s hands. She smiles, running her fingers through its fur.

“You’re way too trusting,” Koschei complains, though he’s finally moving up to stand beside her. 

“Don’t tell me you’re scared.”

“Absolutely terrified,” Koschei quips sarcastically. Theta suspects he isn’t being entirely honest. Theta rolls her eyes at him, placing one hand at the horse’s withers and the other on its back.

“Give me a leg?”

It isn’t a particularly graceful act to get on the horse’s back. Koschei shoves way too hard, almost causing her to topple head first over the horse’s back, though a firm grasp on the mane saves her from a painful meeting with the ground. 

Fortunately, ther horse does not take off with her as soon as she’s on its back, allowing her to help Koschei mount it as well. She reaches out her hand, but he doesn’t take it.

“Come on, we’re nearly there, what are you waiting for?”

“Maybe I should just stay here. Watch our stuff.”

Theta scoffs. “What if I need help? You said you weren’t afraid.”

“I’m not.”

“Then get on.”

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“I can’t swim!” he snaps. Theta falters, noticing the slight quiver to his lip, his eyes seething. Out of all the fears he could have had, she never thought water would be one of them. Not that he was ever the most athletic person.

“You’ll be fine. I won’t let you fall.”

Koschei snorts, clearly not feeling very comforted, but he eventually relents, allowing Theta to pull him up behind her. It is a fumbling process which involves a lot of pulling on her side and a lot of swearing on Koschei’s. When he’s finally seated behind her, he instantly cling to her for his dear life, a surprised yell escaping his lips as the horse turns to vade into the lake.

“If we fall off I’ll kill you,” Koschei mutters, his grip tightening around her waist as they breach the water surface.

Theta is not sure what she expected but the water is shockingly frigid, only Koschei’s body clinging to hers like a wet blanket providing any warmth. Still, it is a relief to be able to feel his presence so clearly in the dark, even though his teeth keeps chattering loudly into her ear.

The horse is a fast swimmer, bringing them up to the island in the middle of the lake in a matter of minutes. Of course, by then they’re both sopping wet and more than a little bit cold, but that is quickly forgotten when Theta spots the pedestal on the top of a small incline in the middle of the little sliver of land.

The key looks completely out of place on the crystalline pedestal growing out of the ground, its mundane design something that could have belonged to any old key, not to mention the box that holds the secrets to a weapon of mass destruction. 

“This is too easy,” Koschei mutters. He glance over to where the horse is waiting for them by the shore, its empty eyes watching them silently. “There has to be a trap.”

“Or this location was merely well enough hidden that they felt confident about leaving the key here.”

“River found it easily enough.”

“River is an archeologist. Finding stuff is kind of her thing?”

“And the warning on the outside?”

“Just there to scare us off?”

“I hope you’re right.”

Koschei decides to check the pedestal for any spells that might spring a trap on them should they remove the key, but no matter how thoroughly he investigates, he doesn’t seem to find anything. Theta allows him to do so for his own peace of mind, though with her wet clothes and the chilly underground air, she rather wishes he would hurry.

“They’ve been thorough. If there’s a trap here, I can’t find it.”

“Let’s hope there isn’t then. Do you want to do the honours?”

Koschei does absolutely not look like he wants to, but he reaches out nevertheless, steeling himself as his hand touches the key. It leaves the pedestal, the little chain attached to it clutched in Koschei’s hand.

They both just stare at it for a moment, refusing to believe it was actually that simple, then Theta breaks out into a grin. When they’d first set off on their adventure, she expected them to need a couple of days, but here they are, the key already secured. Koschei stashes it away in a safe compartment in his bag.

The horse generously decides to lie down to allow them to get onto its back easier, something Theta is infinitely grateful for, though she wishes it had thought of that earlier. Still, she isn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Koschei seems to have calmed down a little after they retrieved the key, his grip on her not as suffocating as it was before.

They’re about halfway across the lake when Theta begins to noticing something wrong. At first it is the giggles. She writes them of as being induced by being cold and tired, and they’re nearly there anyway, however, they keep growing louder and louder. She isn’t really alarmed before the horse begins to sink.

“Theta.” 

Koschei must have noticed it too, his eyes wide with fear when she glances over her shoulder. However, there’s little she can do as the horse morphs beneath them, its white mane turning black and its body shrinking and contorting until all that is left is something vaguely humanoid.

A humanoid with hands that latches onto them and drags them down.

Theta barely has the time to draw a gasp of breath before she is completely submerged, the creature latched onto her upper arm in a bruising grip. She tries to kick it, but the water is too dark and murky for her to see properly and her hair keeps getting in her vision.

She eventually manages to land a kick, the creature letting go with a howl that is barely audible underwater. She doesn’t waste any time to access the extent of its injury, adrenaline pumping through her veins as she speeds towards the shore in quick, strong strokes.

It is only as she stumbles onto land that it hits her. Koschei can’t swim.

She barely takes the time to grab her wand, altering between yelling Koschei’s name and hurling stunning charms at the now many creatures lurking in the waters. The lake seems endlessly deep as she dives down, the light from her charms the only thing providing her with means to see.

He’s still fighting frantically against three of the creatures when she spot him, though his movements are rapidly slowing. The creatures scatter around her as she hurls another volley of jinxes their way, leaving Koschei to sink into an early death.

She manages to get ahold of him, struggling to bring both him and his bag to the surface, only to realise there is no way she’ll make it to the shore with them both. She frees him from the bag with a severing charm, watching it sink beneath them until it’s out of sight.

Unfortunately, the time she’s spent freeing Koschei has given the creature’s enough time to recover, their faces twisted into fanged snarls when she approaches the shore. However, they don’t dare to attack her, hissing at her when she points her wand in their direction.

She knows she’ll need to begin resuscitating Koschei soon if he’s stopped breathing, but she doesn’t dare taking her sight of the creatures that now stand between her and the tunnel entrance. There are roughly eleven of them, she doesn’t like her chances.

Still holding her wand outstretched ready to cast a spell if she needs to, she inches back towards Koschei’s unconscious body, her fingers slipping to the side of his throat to find his pulse still beating weakly beneath her fingers.

Good, she can work with that.

She’s about to move her hand over to his mouth to check for breath when one of the creature’s lunges at her, it’s dead before it can even think of reaching her, blasted to shred by an explosion curse.

Satisfied that the others won’t try for at least a little while, she drops down before Koschei, wand still in hand when she finds he isn’t breathing. It is difficult to proceed with rescue breathing and standing guard at the same time, so she makes a split second decision to get Koschei stable first, slotting her lips over his and praying that he isn’t beyond saving.

There’s a loud rumble, possibly the creatures, but she keeps up her work despite tears of frustration beginning to form in her eyes as Koschei’s body remains limp and lifeless beneath her.

He nearly headbutts her when he eventually draws a gasping breath, water spilling from his mouth as he coughs violently.

She doesn’t realise she’s pulled him into a hug before he’s weakle patting at her shoulder in an attempt to shove her off him, his face looking harrowed when she meets his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Theta sobs. “I’m so so sorry.”

“Don’t.”

“We lost the key.”

“I don’t think that’s the worst of our problems right now,” Koschei whispers, motioning for her to turn around. Behind them, the entrance to the tunnel has been collapsed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not all too happy with the ending but I figured I'd rather get the chapter up than withholding it another two-three days.  
> Thank you all for reading!


	14. Forest creatures

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I promised this chapter to be due a week ago but my deadlines took me completely by surprise. Nevertheless it is finally here!

Her first instinct is disbelief. Despite Koschei’s protests she clamber over to where the tunnel entrance had been previously, trying to shift the rocks out of the way, but it only causes a small rock slide, dust whirling up into the air as the boulders tumble onto the cave floor, the entrance still as obstructed as it had been previously.

“It’s no use, we’re trapped,” Koschei sneers, still clutching his sides as if in pain. He still makes slightly wheezy sounds as he breathes, but Theta figures if he’s got enough breath to sass her he can’t be that worse for wear.

“We’ll find a way out,” Theta mutters, slumping down beside him. She has to admit her optimism sounds fake even to her. 

"We could try to blast our way out with an explosion charm."

"And risk bringing the cave roof down on ourselves in the process?" Koschei sighs, refusing to meet her eyes. Still, there is no denying he’s in pain now that she’s closer, his jaw stubbornly set and his entire body tense despite the fact that the danger is over for now.

“You’re hurt,” Theta tries, afraid that he’ll deny it and attempt to shove her away. She wouldn’t blame him, she’s the one who got them into this mess in the first place.

“My apparition splinters, I think the wounds have opened again.”

“Let me see.”

Koschei makes a tiny noise of protest, but allows her to help him out of his sopping wet hoodie, then his t-shirt. They should probably both get out of their clothes to avoid getting sick, but with most of their supplies at the bottom of the lake, the thought doesn’t feel that alluring.

Instead she tries to focus at the task at hand. There’s some blood oozing out of Koschei’s side, but luckily only a small part of the wounds have reopened. In addition, a new set of shallower scrapes, presumably what caused the wound to reopen in the first place, is found all over his torso; those creatures really did a number on him. Still, it should be an easy fix until she remembers that their med kit is at the bottom of the lake with the rest of their belongings. 

“Is it bad?” Koschei asks, his eyes now closed. There’s a thin layer of sweat lingering on his skin and Theta prays to whatever deities that might exist he hasn’t gotten an infection. That would surely be the last thing they need right now.

“You’ll live.” Having nothing else to work with at the moment, she reaches for Koschei’s t-shirt, ripping thin strips from it. It is probably too soaked to be of much help, but she presses them to his wound, moving his hand to keep pressure on it. The white fabric quickly gets tainted in a diluted red colour.

Theta’s eyes flick to the lake, wondering how deep it is. Surely it can’t be that deep what with those creatures living in it and being underground and all. Then again, its entire existence is probably of magical origin, so it isn’t easy to be certain. Then again, what choice does she have?

“I’m retrieving our supplies,” she decides.

Koschei sits up, wincing at the pain but manages to level her a look of disapproval. “I don’t know if you recall, dear, but they’re currently located at the bottom of the lake. The one we just nearly drowned in.”

“The one  _ you _ nearly drowned in,” Theta shoots back in annoyance. “Besides, we need them if we even want a shot at surviving, and if we don’t our trip here will have been in vain. It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“You don’t even know how deep it is. They could be lost forever.”

“I’m a better swimmer than you. And if it turns out I can’t go that far down, I’ll head back and we’ll figure something else out.”

“Theta.”

Koschei’s eyes are pleading. She turns away from him, not knowing if she’ll have the resolve to do what she must if he keeps looking at her like that.

“I’ll be back. I promise. Keep pressure on that wound.”

She pats his hand which is clutching the wet rag to his side, then stands up. “The creatures fled already, there’s nothing there that can harm me, and I will have my wand with me.”

“Are you saying that just to reassure yourself?” Koschei calls after her.

She doesn’t dignify that with an answer, taking a deep breath as she breaks into a run then dives back into the lake.

The water feels almost warm around her after having spent a few freezing minutes on land in her wet clothes. She uses the wand lighting charm to provide at least some line of sight, but the murky doesn’t allow her to see very far even with her wand being illuminated.

She’s almost surprised when her hand reaches out and touches ground, more sand whirling up around her. This is also when she realises she is in desperate need of air. It’s easy enough to swim up, breaching the surface with a gasp. 

Koschei perks up from where he is sitting at the shore, probably expecting her to realise her endeavour is fruitless and give up, but now that she knows she can reach the bottom there’s no stopping her.

It takes her several tries before she locates the right spot to dive down, her limited sight making it a frustrating search, but eventually luck decides to be on her side and she emerges with the bag and a triumphant cheer.

Koschei helps her sift through the items when she reaches land, both of them relieved to find that everything is still there, including the key. More importantly at the moment though, is the medkit Graham packed for them.

“Knew I was doing the right thing waterproofing this,” Theta grins, popping open the lid to find everything safe and dry inside. “Though I have to admit it was more out of concern for us getting caught out in the rain.”

She patches up Koschei to her best ability, then procures a set of blankets which she also had the foresight to place under a waterproofing spell before leaving. With no branches or similar structures inside the cave, she’s forced to leave their clothes out on the rocks to dry, but she figures it is better than nothing.

They share some of the dried fruit Theta had stashed away in Koschei’’s bag, none of them feeling much like cooking up a proper meal, before lying down to sleep.

Theta settles down in a way so her back touches Koschei’s, his form tensing up for a second when he notices her proximity.

“Is this not alright?” Theta opens one eye, silently wondering how this is the person who surprised her with a kiss in the hallway only a couple of days ago and whether or not they're going to address the fact that it happened anytime soon.

She glances over her shoulder as she can feel him turn over behind her. His eyes looks almost ancient in their tiredness, his chapped lips slightly parted. Theta slowly turns over as well until she can feel his shallow breaths ghosting across her lips. She can feel him staring at them though he's too close to get a good sense of where he's looking.

“We should sleep,” he eventually whispers, but doesn’t move away. Theta tries her best to not be disappointed, berating herself for not being quite brave enough to take that next step herself. Still there's a comfort to them staying like that, almost wrapped up in each other but not quite touching. It doesn’t take long before tiredness takes over, plunging her into a dreamless sleep. 

* * *

When she wakes up the following morning, it is to a soft light filtering in from above. Tiredly Theta pulls the blanket over her head to block it out, her body feeling uncomfortably exhausted despite her rest. 

She slumbers for another five minutes before realisation hitting her.

The sun is barely visible through small cracks in the cave roof high above them, but it is an opportunity that had gone completely amiss for her the previous day. Though high above, the largest cracks look like they might fit a human through them.

Excitedly she clambers over to the cave wall, dislodging Koschei’s still sleeping form that had come to rest against her during the night in the process. He makes a displeased sound, eyes blinking open in confusion.

“What are you doing?” he sighs, pulling the blanket around himself with a shiver.

“I think I found our way out! Look up, those cracks appear to lead to the surface. If we can climb high enough-”

“That is madness.” Koschei nods pointedly at the cave ceiling. “If we fall we’d be dead in less than two seconds flat.”

“Come on, Koschei. It’s hardly worse than half of the things you’ve gotten yourself into in your time at the academy. Plus it’s either that or blowing up the tunnel, your choice.”

Koschei glares at her, his jaw tense, but eventually he sighs, gathering his clothes from where Theta left them to dry the previous night.

“Alright, but if we fall I’m murdering you in your next life.”

Theta can't withhold a grin at that.

It is an inelegant process to scale the cave walls. The rocks are sharp in places, leaving them both with minor cuts and bruises on their hands. And one point, Koschei suggests just trying to levitate them all the way up, but none of them have the energy nor the skill to pulls something like that off at the moment.

After what feels like a small eternity, they eventually manage to find a route which allows them to slip through one of the bigger cracks. 

They both tumble over onto their backs, breathing heavily when they finally claw their way to the surface. Theta feels an exhausted laughter bubbling up in her throat, the ridiculousness of it all finally getting to her. Koschei does not seem to share her amusement, but for once her doesn’t send a snarky comment her way, which is an improvement in Theta’s eyes.

He is still on his back, squinting up at the harsh light when she sits up, finally taking a moment to assess their surroundings. They’re in some sort of clearing, tall but slender birch trees framing the little area that is so perforated with cracks that no tree would stand a chance to grow there.

Unlike the forest they entered into the previous day, this one is well lit, sporting an almost dreamlike feeling to it. There are small flowers peeking out of the short but very green grass, and the leaves of the trees rustles peacefully on white branches that stretches up towards a cloudless sky. It almost seems to perfect.

Koschei’s expression tells her he is feeling the same unease that she’s experiencing, his movements wary when he rises to his feet.

“This is not the same place we came from. How are we even going to find our way home?”

“If we walk in one direction we’re bound to exit the forest at some point,” Theta muses. Koschei doesn’t look entirely convinced, but they begin walking.

While this forest is far less daunting than the one they’d braved the previous day, Theta can’t shake the feeling that they’re being watched. It is a ridiculous notions seeing as they have a relatively clear line of sight.

Still, the way the wind rustles the branches, the leaves whispering silently above them and the bushes hissing around them is enough to make anyone paranoid.

She gets so caught up in scouting out any dangers ahead that she completely neglects watching her back. 

They’ve been walking for about an hour when there is a violent rustle in the leaves behind them, a tall shape moving in the shadow of the trees they’d passed earlier.

It emerges from the bushes silently in a regal fashion, stealing Theta’s breath away when it comes into the light. 

“You’re wood elves,” Theta whispers, completely awestruck by the group that is gathering before them. “People said you were a myth, but you really do exist.”

“We have many names,” the one leading the group speaks with a voice that feels like a summer breeze, light and almost song-like, but grave enough to carry the weight of the world. “Elves, spirits, walkers of the underworld.”

Their leader is tall, long hair partly braided back with a circlet of branches adorning their head. Their eyes is a moss-like green colour that seems to change with every step they take closer to them. Theta feels an almost absurd need to prostrate herself before the leader.

She shrugs the notion off, raising her chin in defiance. Forest spirits like the ones they’re currently faced with are known to play tricks on the minds of mortals. 

_ Choose your words carefully, Theta. _

She jumps, glancing over at Koschei who is staring ahead in an almost bored fashion. It might have been believable if Theta hadn’t just heard his voice in her head.

_ I told you, I’m quite skilled at legilimency, but focus. I recognise her, she’s the queen of the downworld. One wrong word and we’ll be stuck here for sure. _

Trust Koschei to doubt her ability to negotiate. It's not like he looks like he's about to do anything about the situation himself, so Theta decides to put her best smile on and give it a shot.

“You wouldn’t know the way out of here would you?” Theta asks, trying to keep her smile casual and friendly but judging by the way the many creatures gathering behind the leader is hissing at her, she has a sneaking suspicion her intent isn’t coming across the way she’d like.

She can feel Koschei cringing through whatever bond it is that he has established with her mind. The queen squints at her, her powerful voice riddled with disbelief. 

“You trespass here, steal from our kind, then attack us. You’re no better than the rest of your people. You only wish to use us for your own gains. May you rot in the earth, forgotten.”

“We didn’t attack you. You were the one who attacked us!”

“Silence, child. Your kind has brought nothing but terror upon my people since the dawn of time. Why would we help you?”

Theta grits her teeth at the accusation. While the fact that wizards regard themselves as the intellectual elite of the magical world, Theta has always gone out of her way to be kind to all life forms. That seems to mean very little now as she stands face to face with the queen of the downworld. Theta feels utterly frustrated, wishing she could tell the queen exactly what she thinks about her and her policies.

She takes a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm. “Don’t you understand. If we don’t get this key back wizards won’t be the only ones in danger. Do you think Rassilon will spare you? You’re right, he has no regards for you. We on the other hand, we can change that, but we need the key.”

“The key was perfectly safe where it was until you came. Why would we let you leave with it, what guarantee do we have that you won’t use it against us. The wizard who asked us to guard it said to never let anyone touch it again and we have done his bidding. Look where it got us, our peace disturbed.”

“Apologies for our rudeness, your highness. I understand how this must seem to you, but if you won’t help us out of kindness, then may I propose a bargain?”

The downworlders hiss at him, their queen eyeing Koschei with cold eyes. “What sort of bargain?”

“A sacrifice. Something of great importance to our very identity. Something that ties into our very soul. You’re obliged to consider such offers, aren’t you?”

A shiver runs down Theta’s spine, in awe over Koschei’s ability to slip into the role of sleazy manipulating bastard so easily. Unlike her who will knock down walls left and right to get what she wants, Koschei knows how to bend the rules in his favour.

“You’re well informed,” the queen muses. 

“I’m  _ educated _ . If I give you my family name, symbolised by this ring, will you provide our safe return to the mortal world.”

“Koschei,” Theta warns, not liking the hungry look the queen is now levelling her friend with. He openly ignores her, holding out the ring for the queen to take it. She runs her finger over the Oakdown insignia carved into the surface of a blood red ruby.

“You realise you’re offering a part of your soul, boy? You will no longer reap the benefits of your name, for they will belong with us.”

“I am aware,” Koschei agrees. For the first time during their encounter with the queen, she grins, several rows of sharp teeth glistening in her mouth.

“Very well. You have a bargain. The kelpies will follow you out.” The queen motions to a group of horses, just like the one they encountered at the lake. Theta swallows, their judgemental eyes boring into her, screaming of the abuse she put them through. The queen smiles sweetly at them as they pass her.

They don’t dare to get onto the kelpies’ backs, nor do they seem inclined to allow them to, so they end up walking behind the beasts. Now that the other forest creatures are far behind them, the only sound is that of the kelpies’ hooves treading softly on the ground.

Theta glances up at Koschei who is walking silently behind her, his face grim ever since he struck the bargain.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Theta mutters softly.

“Why? It got us out? We even have the ring.”

“You gave away a piece of your  _ soul _ , Koschei. That’s not something to make light of.”

Koschei lets out a humourless laughter. “I thought that out of all people, you would understand. That name means nothing to me.”

He increases his pace, signifying that the conversation is over. She doesn’t press any further, the kelpies stopping soon after Koschei allows the silence to fall again.

They’re back at their portkey again, the lonely hat still lying sadly in the tall grass. They take each others hands wordlessly, allowing themselves to be transported back to the row.

* * *

Travelling by portkey always makes Theta feel dizzy for a few moments, her world still spinning after her feet is firmly planted on the ground. Still, it doesn’t take her much time to catch onto the state of things.

The hallway of Paternoster row is filled with people rushing to and fro, many of them which she has never met before. There is a stressed sensation to it all, no one stopping to question their arrival.

It is Clara who eventually takes pity on them.

“You’re back!” she shouts, hurrying over from the other side of the room. Her hands are loaded full with empty round-bottom-flasks, her precariously stacked glass-flask-tower threatening to come crashing down onto the floor as she bounds over.

“We were barely gone, it’s only been a day,” Koschei grouches.

Clara raises an eyebrow at them. “What are you talking about? You’ve been gone for several days. We were almost worried you wouldn’t return.”

Koschei mutters a curse and something crass about the underworlders then turns to Clara with an unsettling grin.

“Good to know we would have been missed,” Koschei deadpans. Theta knocks an elbow into his side, giving him a pointed look. She has no idea why he seems to despise Clara so much.

“I can see that you’re packing up. What’s happening?”

“An informant at Stormcage contacted us yesterday. They’ve scheduled an execution for Missy.”

“And you’re packing because?” Koschei snorts, crossing his arms over his chest. Theta sighs, accepting that something’s clearly gotten him into a mood and they will need to talk it out later. She is not looking forward to it.

Clare does fortunately not pay Koschei any mind. “What do you think? We’re getting her out of there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know legilimency isn't used like this in the Hp verse but I need some of that timelord telepathy softness even though they're not timelords in this AU  
> Next up: backstory time!
> 
> As always I can be found on tumblr as Ilunefulltsinn, thanks for reading!


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